Advanced Sex Ed
by MaxCale
Summary: Ricky wracked his brain for the knowledge of what was going to happen next. 'I don't think they covered this part in sex ed' he thought. Another round of excruciating pain surged through his hands before they started to go numb again. 'Nope, they definitely skipped this part in sex ed.'
1. All Shook Up

Amy waddled along behind her mother as they browsed for a few more clothes and baby items at JC Penny. Amy was due to deliver in two more weeks and her mother insisted on buying just a few more things for her grandson's nursery. She had dragged Amy along in order to get her opinion on the things she picked out. Ricky was in another area of JC Penny looking at jeans. He had had a clumsy week and managed to snag one back pocket on two different pairs of jeans on the edge of things around his apartment so he'd come to buy two new pairs; he'd chosen JC Penny because they were on sale. Back in the baby department Anne was still browsing and Amy was getting bored, plus she was starting to get hungry again.

"Mom, I'm hungry." Anne tore her eyes away from a display of baby blankets to look at her.

"I'm just about done, sweetie." Amy rolled her eyes.

"Mom, I can make it to the food court without an escort." Anne gave her a loving, motherly expression.

"I know, Amy. I'd just feel more comfortable if I were with you, to help you if you need it. You're really close to your due date and I know it can be pretty difficult to maneuver and move around too quickly at this point in a pregnancy." Amy's annoyed expression softened at her mother's concern.

"I get that, mom, but we both know you're not ready to go just yet," she told her mother with a knowing smile, a smile Anne returned. Anne had gotten very excited about the prospect of being a grandmother over the past couple of weeks and she couldn't help buying something baby-related every time she went out. Anne caved.

"Alright. I'll meet you in the food court but you text me if you need or want my help for any reason, okay?" Anne told her, a hint of nervousness and concern creeping into her voice. Amy gave her mom a smile and nodded before making her way to the elevator to head downstairs and towards the food court. When the elevator arrived there was a woman inside already. Amy stepped in and chose to stand as far away from the woman as possible. She watched the floor numbers descend from five to three before the elevator stopped. The doors opened to reveal none other than the father of her baby. He stepped inside and chose to stand in between Amy and the other woman. The doors closed and Amy watched the floor number change to two when there was a loud noise and the elevator shook violently. Amy attempted to brace herself against one side of the elevator but had trouble getting her footing. She fell sideways into Ricky and he dropped his shopping bag to grab onto her and make sure she didn't fall, doing his best to slowly lower them both the floor. The elevator stopped moving, the lights went out, and the emergency lights kicked on. Amy looked up at Ricky with terror in her eyes and she saw her fear reflected in his. Amy heard her phone vibrating and searched in her purse for it. Her mom was calling her.

"Mom! What happened!?" Amy asked, terror still very evident in her voice.

"Amy!" her mom said with relief. "Are you okay!? Where are you!?" Even though Anne was relieved her daughter was okay enough to answer her phone she didn't know whether Amy was completely uninjured or not.

"I'm stuck in the elevator at the second floor. What happened!?"

"There was an earthquake, a big one." Just as Anne finished her sentence the elevator began to shake and Amy heard something crashing to the floor on her mother's end of the call; they were experiencing an aftershock.

"Mom! Are you okay!?"

"I'm fine, Amy. A display of toys fell over somewhere nearby. Are you okay? Are you hurt at all? You didn't fall when the quake hit did you?" Anne asked worriedly.

"No. I lost my balance when the elevator started shaking but Ricky caught me and I'm fine."

"Ricky?"

"He got in the elevator on the third floor," she explained. The woman on the elevator had pressed the emergency button and a voice came through the intercom just then.

"Hello. Is everything alright?"

"Yes and no," the woman replied. "I'm stuck on or possibly just below the second floor along with two teenagers, one of whom is very pregnant." She turned to Amy with a comforting smile.

"Who was that?" Anne asked, having heard the woman's voice.

"There's a woman stuck in the elevator with us. She was talking to…whoever answers when you push that emergency button in an elevator."

"Okay. Try to stay calm and relaxed and I'll try to find whoever's in charge of helping to get you out. Okay?"

"Okay, mom."

"Okay. I love you, sweetie, and I'll call as soon as I know something." Anne hung up and Amy put her phone back in her purse.

"We'll send firefighters to get you all out but it may be a while. The earthquake did some structural damage to some floors and we'll need to make sure the damage is stabilized before we can get you folks out," the voice over the intercom told them. "The quake also knocked out several power transformers near the elevator and we're waiting for several electricians to check and make sure all the circuits are still grounded. I need you folks to sit tight for a while."

"We'll do our best," the woman informed him. She sat down and turned to face Amy and Ricky. "So. It looks like we're gonna be here for a while," she told them with a smile.


	2. Waiting Game

"My name's Ava. What are yours?" the woman asked them.

"Ricky."

"Amy."

"Nice to meet you Amy and Ricky." She took off her light jacket and put it into one of her shopping bags. "We all might as well get comfortable." Amy and Ricky settled themselves more comfortably on the floor and put their backs to one wall of the elevator, facing Ava, and prepared to wait for help to arrive.

"So how far along are you?" Ava asked.

"Um….34 weeks," Amy told her nervously. She'd gotten used to people starring at her with disgusted looks for being a pregnant teenager and she wasn't in the mood to be stuck in an elevator with another judgmental stranger. Ava reached into her purse and pulled out a water bottle. She rolled it to Amy. Amy stopped it with her hand and gave her a confused look; Ava chuckled.

I'm a nurse," she explained. "I don't know how long we're gonna be in here and you'll need to stay hydrated." Amy's confusion was quickly replaced with surprise and gratitude.

"Thanks," she said before looking down to stare at her lap. Ricky watched Amy's demeanor change from surprised to withdrawn. He recognized this because he'd seen it in his mother. There were times when his father would snap at her and she'd reply and withdraw into herself to block out the pain. Ricky got the feeling he'd just missed something important in the exchange.

"You okay, Amy?" Ricky asked her worriedly. She turned to look at him with confusion. _Why is he worried about me?_ She nodded but her confused look kept him from feeling believing that she was okay. "You sure?" She nodded again.

"Why are you asking me that?"

"Ava gave you a water bottle and then you got all…" he searched for the right word. "Distant." Amy wasn't sure what he was talking about and he wanted to make her understand without telling a complete stranger about his past. He glanced at Ava before looking back at Amy. "When I was younger sometimes my dad would snap at my mom and she'd respond and then do what you just did. It was her way of dealing with my dad's anger." He watched as Amy connected the dots and understood what he was trying to tell her. She also glanced at Ava quickly but then looked back down at her lap.

"I'm okay, Ricky, really." Ava watched their conversation quietly, picking up on the fact she was an outsider to a rather personal conversation. She also knew exactly why Amy's demeanor had changed after she told Amy her occupation.

"Amy," Ava said gently, causing Amy and Ricky to both look at her. Ricky took Amy's hand, instinctively knowing Amy needed some kind of comfort in order to face this woman. "I was a teen mom myself so I've got no plans, or right, to judge you." She gave Amy a knowing look and watched Amy's posture relax. Ricky knew he'd just missed something again. He looked at Amy and nonverbally asked for an explanation. Amy saw his expression and laughed.

"What's so funny?" he asked her.

"You've never been a pregnant teenage girl." Ricky looked at her like she'd lost her mind. "Ricky, just about everywhere I go people look at me, see that I'm a teenager and pregnant and then judge me for it. I get judgmental, disgusted, and pitying looks and people whisper about how I'm obviously an irresponsible tramp with bad parents because no decent teenage girl has sex let alone gets herself knocked up." Ricky blanched at her words. He knew people talked about her but he had no idea how bad it was for her. "Since Ava's a nurse I know she's probably seen her share of teen moms and I just felt uncomfortable with the thought of being stuck in an elevator for who knows how long with another judgmental stranger."

"I'm sorry, Amy. I knew kids at school talked about you but I didn't realize adults gave you such a hard time too." Amy just shrugged.

"It is what it is, Ricky," she said with a sigh as she leaned her head back against the wall of the elevator and shifted her posture slightly.

"Anyone hungry?" Ava asked, pulling packs of dried apple chips out of her purse and holding them out for Amy and Ricky to take. Amy quickly tore hers open and started eating while Ricky just set his next to him. He wasn't hungry yet but he might be later, depending on when they got out of there. "So how do you two know each other," she asked conversationally. Ricky looked at Amy not really sure what to say but Amy was again staring at her lap, her face bright red. Ricky decided just telling Ava the basics would answer the question without embarrassing Amy too much.

"We met at band camp, had sex one night, and I got her pregnant." They were both anxiously waiting for Ava's response.

"So what instruments do the two of you play?" They both visibly relaxed, having found a topic they were both comfortable talking about openly.

"Drums."

"French horn."

"Impressive. I don't play any instruments but I love to sing," Ava informed them. They began talking about their favorite songs and music styles and before they knew it half an hour had passed. Amy began shifting more frequently as they were talking and Ava's nursing training kicked in. "Are you feeling alright Amy?"

"My back's hurting a little and.." her voice froze and her eyes widened in shock and fear as she felt wetness between her legs. Ricky looked at her with alarm when he noticed her expression and it became full blown panic when he noticed a small puddle forming beneath Amy.

"What the…!" Ricky cried.

"No, no, no, it's too soon!" Amy wailed. She quickly pulled out her phone and speed dialed her mother. Anne picked up on the first ring.

"Amy, I don't…" Amy cut her off.

"My water just broke!" Amy half screeched half sobbed into the phone.

"Relax, Amy," Ava told her calmly, coming over to Amy's side.

"That woman's right, sweetie. If your water just broke you're still quite a ways away from giving birth," Anne tried to reassure her daughter. Even though Anne was panicking inside that her baby could be in labor while stuck in an elevator, she knew she needed to hide it in order to keep Amy calm.

"But what if we're in here so long the baby comes!?" Amy asked tearfully.

"Then I guess you'll have an interesting story to tell your baby about the day they were born," Ava told her with a smile. "Amy, may I speak to your mother for a moment?" Amy nodded and handed Ava the phone. "Hello, Amy's mother. My name's Ava."

"Hi, Ava. I'm Anne."

"Well, Anne, I just wanted to tell you that you don't need to worry should Amy go into active labor because I'm a registered nurse, I've given birth myself, and I've delivered a few babies." Anne sighed with relief.

"Thank you, Ava. Knowing that my baby's in good hands helps. Take care of her?"

"Of course. Did you wanna speak to Amy again?"

"Sure."

"Mom?"

"You're in good hands, honey. And I'm gonna do everything I can from this side to make sure they get you out quickly. Hang in there."

"I'll try mom."

"That's my girl. I love you."

"I love you too." Amy hung up the phone and put it back in her purse. Ava stood and offered Amy her hands.

"Let's get you up out of that puddle." Ricky helped Amy stand and they walked her to the other side of the elevator and then helped her sit down.

"So," Ricky said, addressing his question to Ava, "What now?" Ava chuckled.

"Now we wait." Ricky and Ava sat down on either side of Amy with their backs against the wall of the elevator and they all continued to wait for help to arrive.


	3. Labor Pains

"Ah!" Amy cried out with pain as one hand automatically went to her belly. Ava reached over and took her other hand and Amy squeezed down on it. Ricky had a 'deer caught in the headlights' look on his face; he had no idea what to do to help.

"Remember to breathe, Amy, just like they taught you in Lamaze class." Amy shook her head.

"My mom and I never made it to those classes," Amy grunted out through the pain. The contraction subsided and Amy relaxed. "This really hurts," she said tearfully to no one in particular. Ava patted her hand.

"I know, honey." She gave Amy a sympathetic smile. "It's only gonna get worse." Amy's eyes widened in fear and Ricky went from feeling lost and helpless to scared out of his mind.

"What do you mean it gets worse!? Isn't there anything you can do to help her!?" he practically shouted at Ava. She wasn't upset by his outburst or tone of voice; she'd crossed paths with enough expectant fathers to know that he was just scared for Amy. She shook her head.

"Ricky," she said calmly. "All we can do is try to keep Amy as comfortable as possible and wait for your baby to decide when it's time to come out." She started up a conversation with Amy to help distract her. "Do you know what you're having?"

"A boy," Amy told her.

"Do you have any names picked out?" Amy shook her head.

"I met this woman who worked at a baby store and she told me when she saw her twins' faces she knew what to name each of them. I figured I'd wait until I saw him and a name would just come to me."

"And if it doesn't?" Amy shrugged.

"I don't know." She turned to Ricky. "Did you have any names picked out?" Her question shocked him and he had to look away from her.

"Uh….no. I figured you'd wanna do that and it, you know, shouldn't be up to me….considering."

"You're his father, Ricky. You can have a say in what you wanna name your son." He quickly looked her in the eye, his shock replaced by surprise and gratitude.

"Thanks, Amy." She gave him a small smile which he returned before looking down at the elevator floor. "I haven't thought of any names," he informed her.

"Why not name him after his daddy or his grandpa? Quite a few people name their firstborn after a family member," Ava told them, in an effort to keep conversation flowing and Amy's mind off being in labor. Amy thought about it for a few minutes.

"I don't wanna name him after my dad," she said thoughtfully and then turned her head to look at Ricky. "And I know you don't wanna name him after yours." He nodded. "I think it should be something simple. His life's gonna be complicated enough." Amy momentarily forgot all about choosing her child's name as another contraction hit her. She reached out and grabbed Ricky's hand and he cried out in pain. He clenched his jaw and waited for Amy to let go. After the contraction passed she turned her head to look at him, confusion on her face. "What were you crying out for?" He looked at her with disbelief.

"You had a death grip on my hand!" Amy was still looking at him confused when Ava chuckled. They both turned their heads to look at her and Ava spoke to Ricky.

"Welcome to labor," she said before chuckling again. "Amy didn't squeeze that hard on purpose, Ricky. She's in indescribable pain and when a contraction hits her all she can do is grab onto the closest object for support and bear down until it passes. The thing she grabbed just happened to be something that can feel pain." As Ava's words set in Ricky turned to look at Amy with tears in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Amy! I never meant to do this to you! I know I don't deserve to be having this baby with you and I swear I'm gonna be there for you and our son every day for the rest of my life!" Ava smiled a knowing smile. She'd seen this too, the baby daddy realizing for the first time that sex ends in a painful process called childbirth. She also knew some angry words from Amy would be coming as her labor progressed. Since they were teenagers Ava decided to intervene before things got too heated.

"Amy?"

"Huh?"

"Do you hate Ricky?" Ricky was shocked that Ava had just asked that question but quickly became scared, afraid of Amy's answer. Amy was likewise a little taken aback but she answered anyway.

"No," she replied, her brow knitted with confusion. Ava looked at Ricky to explain.

"As her labor progresses Amy's gonna swing back and forth between swearing she hates you and tearfully begging you not to leave her side until she delivers. Her hormones are all over the place and when you throw in pain that she's never experienced before she simply can't help it. Don't take her seriously and do your best to just take whatever she says in stride." Ricky nodded, not sure what was going to happen if they were stuck in that elevator much longer. "And saying 'I know' and 'I'm sorry' a lot actually does help," she told him with a wink. Amy was feeling thirsty and looked around for her water bottle. Ava saw her looking around and handed her the bottle, which she had placed next to her after they'd moved Amy to the other side of the elevator. The emergency responder's voice came over the intercom.

"Hello folks. I've got an update for you. Firefighters and emergency responders have finished accessing the structural damage and have just started shoring up areas that need to be braced before they can come in and get you folks out; we're still waiting to hear back from the electricians about the state of the power circuits near the elevator. I also understand that Amy has gone into labor?" Ava was closest to the intercom so she replied.

"Her water broke forty-five minutes ago but she's not in active labor just yet," Ava informed their faceless assistant.

"Alright. I'll update the emergency responders and paramedics and we'll work as fast as we can to get you folks out of there."

"Ok. Thank you." Just as Ava finished speaking the elevator began shaking again but more violently this time. Amy cried out in panic and Ricky put this arm around her to both calm and steady her; Amy instinctively put her hands around her belly. "Was that another aftershock?" Ava asked over the intercom. There was silence for several minutes. "Hello?"

"Sorry, I'm here. No, it wasn't an aftershock; it was another quake. I'm gonna have to check and make sure none of the progress we've made has been jeopardized. Sit tight folks." The intercom clicked off and they were once again left to wait. Amy's phone rang shortly after; it was Anne.

"Mom."

"Amy! Are you alright? Are you still doing okay?" Anne asked in a panicky voice.

"Yeah. The guy over the intercom told us another quake just hit and he'd have to see if there was any new damage before we can get outa here," she informed her mother.

"Okay. I need to call your father back and give him and Ashley an update. Hang in there, sweetie."

"I'll try, mom." Anne ended the call and Amy returned her phone to her purse.

"So, thought of a name yet?" Ava asked, continuing her mission of keeping Amy calm and distracted. Amy thought about it for a few moments, absentmindedly rubbing her belly.

"I don't know. I guess it depends on what his last name's gonna be. I don't wanna name him anything he'll get teased about." Ricky's heart started beating faster. He'd never thought about his son's last name. Would Amy choose her own? Ben's? His? He swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat. _Do I even __**want**__ my kid to have my last name considering how rotten I've been to his mom?_ "John," Amy finally decided. Ricky relaxed and smiled. _John. I like it._

"Awww, how cute," Ava said with a smile. Amy chuckled and began fanning herself, suddenly feeling a little warm. Ricky helped her remove her sweater. Ricky was starting to feel a little warm as well and removed his own jacket.

"It goes with Juergens. It's nice and simple," she said with a smile. Ricky was curious about something.

"Why Juergens? I figured you'd go with Boykewich," he stated, surprisingly keeping the bitterness and jealousy at the thought out of his voice. Amy shook her head.

"It just seemed wrong to give him Ben's last name since we're not legally married." Her statement had gotten Ava's attention and piqued her curiosity, but she had the decency not to pry.

"What about a middle name?" Ava asked, realizing she should probably move them away from their current touchy subject. Amy turned her head to look at Ricky. He shrugged again. _I hadn't bothered to pick out a first name so why would she think I'd have a suggestion for a middle name?_

"Hmmm," Amy said thoughtfully. She started silently mouthing name combination to see how they sounded. When she couldn't find any that she liked she turned to Ricky again. "What's your middle name?"

"Nathaniel," he told her. She tried the full name out in her head and smiled.

"It's perfect. John Nathaniel Juergens." Ricky smiled too, for three reasons. One, he agreed that the name sounded perfect for their little guy. Two, he had gotten to play a part in naming his son. Three, and most importantly, there was no trace of Ben in his son's name. He would have his mother's last name, his father's middle name, and a first name his mother had selected because it went well with Juergens and not Boykewich. Ricky knew he shouldn't be so irritated that Ben was gonna be in the picture for the rest of his son's life but this small little 'victory' would make him happy for the rest of **his** life. Amy reached out for his hand again as another contraction hit her and this time he didn't cry out. _Squeeze as hard as you want whenever you want, Amy. We're in this together_. Amy's stomach began to rumble shortly after the contraction passed. Ricky handed her his bag of apple chips.

"No, thanks. I already finished my bag. You haven't eaten yet."

"I can eat later. You're the one having a baby and I think that trumps anything else," he told her with a smirk. He continued holding the bag out to her and she took it, blushing slightly.

"Thanks."

"No problem." Amy ate a couple of chips quickly but some went down the wrong pipe and she leaned forward and started coughing. Ricky became alarmed and quickly patted her on the back. She took a drink from her water bottle and then sat back against the wall of the elevator.

"Thanks."

"Anytime. Slow down though, ok?" he told/asked her. Amy nodded. "Don't forget to chew, huh?" he said with a smirk and a wink, earning a giggle from Amy.

"Yes, mom." He smiled at her and Ava smiled at the both of them. The intercom clicked back on and interrupted the moment.

"Okay folks I've got good news and bad news."

"Can we have the bad news first?" Ricky asked.

"Ok. The bad news is that some more cracks have appeared in the floors just above and below where you all are trapped so we'll have to brace them before we can get any responders to you three. The good news is that the electricians had just finished checking the power and they've told us that the circuits near the elevator are still grounded; there's no chance of any sort of electrical surge when we get you folks out." The three of them breathed a sigh of relief. Amy continued fanning herself.

"Can they turn on the AC then or something? It's getting stuffy in here" Amy complained. Their helper heard her.

"One of you needs to open the panel beneath the intercom." Ava did so.

"Done," Ava informed him.

"You should see a small black switch. If you flip it to the right it'll kick on the elevator's AC blowers." Ava did so and the AC whirled to life.

"Got it, thanks."

"Sit tight folks; we're working as fast as we can." The intercom clicked off and they continued to wait. Amy's contractions continued to be about twenty minutes apart for the next six hours. Ricky's hand was numb and tingling from being squeezed so hard but he didn't complain; he felt so guilty for doing this to Amy every time another contraction hit her. Amy dozed off and he watched her nap for several minutes.

"How long does labor usually take?" he asked Ava with curiosity.

"It depends." She shifted her position a little before continuing. "It depends on how many times the mother's given birth and really it's up to the baby. Some take their time and some don't. I've seen some first time mothers who were in labor for days and some who delivered within a couple of hours. Labor tends to go quicker if the mother's delivered before but not always." Ricky nodded in understanding and turned his attention back to Amy. She slept soundly for quite a while and then a contraction woke her up. A hand instinctively went to her belly.

"Ahhhhhh!" she cried trying to breathe in through her nose and out through her mouth until the pain subsided. Ava checked her watch. Amy's labor was moving right along but they still had plenty of time to go. Amy turned her head to look at Ava. "Can't you do something to hurry up and get this thing outta me!?" Ricky looked surprised at Amy's outburst. _Did she just call our son a thing?_ He looked at Ava and she just smiled at him and shook her head.

"That's the hormones and pain talking," she reminded him, causing him to relax. He tried to rub Amy's arm soothingly but she snatched it out of his grasp and glared at him.

"This is all your fault you know," she told him.

"I know. I'm sorry."

"Sorry won't fix this. Why couldn't you just keep it in your pants! We were just supposed to be making out or talking for five more minutes, not making a baby!" Her words made Ricky feel irritated with her for attacking him. _Well that's a little unfair; you were there too!_

"Hey, you could've stopped me you know! You didn't say anything so naturally I assumed you were on the pill or something!"

"Of **course** you assumed that you horn dog! It never occurred to you that I was a virgin with no clue what was happening **until** it was happening! **And** it was over before I had a **chance** to say anything you jerk!" Amy had started to tear up as she began that last sentence and her tears knocked the anger right out of Ricky.

"Oh, Amy," he said while reaching for her hand. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize you didn't know what we were getting into until it was too late," he told her truthfully. "I never meant to hurt you," he told her sadly. Amy sniffled.

"I **know**, Ricky. That doesn't change the fact that I'm having a baby at fifteen!" She sighed and leaned her head against the wall of the elevator and closed her eyes. Within minutes she was asleep again. Amy dozed on and off for the next three hours, contractions occasionally waking her up. Ava kept a close eye on her watch as she timed Amy's contractions. They had now been in the elevator for ten hours. Amy's contractions were now five minutes apart, they were all hungry and tired, Anne had called three different times to check on Amy and tell her the emergency responders were working as fast as they could, and Ricky needed to pee. Ava stood up and moved to stand in front of Amy.

"I need you to stand up for a minute, Amy." Amy looked up at her.

"Why?"

"Your contractions are five minutes apart and since I don't know how long it'll be before the paramedics get here, we need to be prepared." She put her hands out and Amy took them. Ricky helped Ava get Amy to a vertical position.

"What are we going to do?" Ava tried to hide a smile but failed.

"Amy, you're having a baby. That might be a little difficult to do with your underwear still on." Amy and Ricky both turned beet red with embarrassment. "Can you take them off yourself or would you like me to help you?" Ava asked, staying in nurse mode despite the embarrassment of her patient.

"Um, I think I can do it, but," she paused to glance at Ricky. She didn't have to say anything; he understood the reason for her embarrassment.

"I'll close my eyes and turn around," he offered and then proceeded to do so. Amy quickly hiked up her dress and removed her panties while Ava kept her arms out near Amy's side in case she needed to steady the mother-to-be. Ava helped her sit back down and Amy quickly balled up her panties and put them in her purse. "You can open your eyes now, Ricky." He saw that she and Ava were sitting down again and joined them.

"Ahhhhh!" Amy cried suddenly, her hands again instinctively going to her belly. She turned her head to look at Ava. "That one felt worse than the others!" she announced, worry in her voice. "Is that normal?" Ava nodded.

"You're quickly approaching active labor, Amy. If the paramedics don't get here soon you may very well have this baby in this elevator." Amy shared a worried look with Ricky. This was **not** how either of them envisioned welcoming their son into the world. Ava quickly pushed the button on the intercom again.

"Yes? Is everyone still doing alright?" their faceless informant asked them once again.

"No," Ava told him. "Amy's getting really close to active labor. Can you tell us about how much longer until we can get out of here?"

"One moment." There was silence for a few moments. "There are only two more braces left to put in place. I'm being told close to another hour, possibly a little longer."

"If I were you I'd push our rescuers to make it closer to an hour," Ava said, causing Amy and Ricky to share another worried look while Ricky rubbed her arm soothingly. The intercom clicked off and Ava turned her attention back to Amy

"Ahhhhhh!" Amy cried out again. "Ava! That one felt **really** different! And I feel like I wanna…..push or something! What's going on!?" she asked in a panic. Ava moved to kneel in front of Amy.

"Amy, I need you to scoot forward a little, bend your legs and lean back." Amy did as instructed. "I'm going to check to see if you're crowning."

"If I'm what!?"

"Crowning. It means that the baby's head is visible." Ava lifted Amy's dress and saw the very top of a baby's head just beginning to emerge. "Amy, you don't have an hour; your baby's coming right now!"


	4. Ready Or Not

Ricky and Amy shared a look of sheer terror and Amy started to cry. Ava sprang into action and started giving out orders.

"Ricky, hand me Amy's sweater and take off one of your shoelaces." Ricky handed Ava Amy's sweater and began unlacing one of his shoes, even though he didn't know why. "Amy, I need you to scoot forward a little bit more." Amy did so just as Ricky finished unlacing a shoe and handed Ava the lace. "Okay. Ricky, I need you to sit behind Amy and let her lean back against you slightly. You're gonna help keep her bent forward when she pushes and be her support when she's not." Ricky moved so he was sitting behind Amy and helped her shift slightly so she was comfortably sitting between his legs. "Okay, Ricky?"

"Yeah?" he replied, his voice coming out a little hoarsely.

"You're gonna be Amy's coach. When I tell her to push you're gonna count to ten for her out loud. Amy?"

"Yeah?" she replied, her voice thick with tears and fear. She reached for Ricky's right hand for support and comfort.

"When I tell you to push you're gonna bear down and push as hard as you can until Ricky gets to ten. When he does you can lean back and rest for a moment. Okay?" Amy just nodded. "Ricky, while she's pushing I may need you to apply pressure to her bikini line." _And where the heck is that?_ Ava could tell from the look on his face he had no idea what she was talking about. She took his left hand and placed it on Amy's bikini line just as another contraction hit. Ricky wracked his brain for the knowledge of what was going to happen next and came up empty. _I don't think they covered this part in sex ed_. Another round of excruciating pain surged through his hand before it started to go numb again as Amy squeezed it; his mind went blank. _Nope, they __**definitely**__ skipped this part in sex ed_.

"AAAAHHHHHH!" Amy cried out. Her forehead broke out in a sweat, dampening her bangs, and she began crying. "I can't do this! I need my mom! I can't do this by myself!" Amy sobbed.

"You're not alone, Amy. Ricky and I are gonna be here with you the whole time," Ava assured her calmly.

"I'm not going anywhere," Ricky assured her as well. Ava checked Amy again and saw that little John's head was halfway out.

"Okay, Amy. Here we go. And push!" Amy bent forward as she began pushing and Ricky leaned forward with her to help her stay in that position. He suddenly remembered he had another job to do as well.

"One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten!" He leaned back against the elevator wall and Amy practically collapsed back against him and she tried to catch her breath. She brushed her damp hair out of her face and Ricky tucked it behind her ear. Ava positioned Amy's sweater in front of her to place little John in once he was all the way out and then gingerly supported his head, which was now fully out.

"You're doing great, Amy. On the next contraction I want you to bear down again, okay sweetie?" Amy nodded. Three seconds later another contraction hit and she bent forward to push again, Ricky leaning forward as well and he began counting.

"One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten!" He leaned back and Amy fell backwards against him once more, breathing hard and sobbing.

"This hurts too much! I can't take any more!" she sobbed and tried in vain to wipe her face as tears of pain and fear fell from her eyes like a stream. "I can't do this!" Ricky's heart broke at the sound of Amy's voice and the heaving of her chest. With her leaning back against him he could feel her struggling to catch her breath and he couldn't help but notice the heat radiating from her as the effort of labor made her sweat. _How could I do this to someone!? How do women do this more than once in a lifetime!?_

"His shoulders are almost out, Amy. You're doing great," he heard Ava inform Amy when suddenly the sounds of people moving around outside the elevator and the clanking of tools reached their ears. Ricky's heart started to beat faster. Help had finally arrived!

"Hurry it up out there!" Ricky shouted. "Please!" he pleaded with the responders. As if in answer to his plea the doors magically opened. The elevator had stopped just six inches below the second floor. While Ricky inwardly sighed with relief, Amy was in too much pain to care; she just wanted this kid out of her. Ava remained calm and turned to face the EMTs.

"I'm a nurse. The head and part of the shoulders are out and so far the delivery's been normal." One of the EMTs hopped down into the elevator and pulled on a pair of gloves to switch places with Ava. She gingerly took hold of John's neck and Ava moved aside. The other EMT pulled out a warming blanket and then hopped into the elevator with the supply bag and took up a position on Amy's right side. He pulled on a pair of gloves and then opened the bag to remove small rubber tourniquets and a pair of surgical scissors. Anne was about to join them in the elevator when the second EMT saw her out of the corner of his eye and motioned for her to stop.

"Please wait there, ma'am."

"That's my daughter!"

"I understand, ma'am, but right now you can best help her by staying where you are and letting us do our job." Anne nodded unhappily and stayed where she was, but moved so she was standing in Amy's line of sight. When she did, she and Amy locked eyes for a moment.

"You're doing great, Amy!" Anne encouraged her. "And I'm right here sweetie." Amy nodded and then broke eye contact to look at the EMTs.

"I need to push!" The EMT holding her son's head answered her.

"Okay, Amy. I want you to bear down as hard as you can on your next contraction." Amy waited for the contraction and then bent forward for the third time; Ricky leaned forward with her and counted for her again.

"One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Eight. Nine. Ten!" John's shoulders were finally all the way out. She collapsed back against Ricky and tried to catch her breath for a moment.

"You're doing great Amy," the EMT holding her son's body informed her. "Alright, Amy, one more big push and your baby will be out. Ready?" Amy nodded tiredly and took a deep breath. On the next contraction she bent forward one last time and pushed with every bit of strength she could muster. Ricky leaned forward with her but didn't bother to count this time, knowing this would be the last push. Even though she was only pushing for a little over a minute, time somehow seemed to slow for Ricky. He felt the heat of exertion coming off Amy, felt her damp hair brushing against his neck, and felt the tension in her body as she beared down one last time. And then suddenly the elevator was filled with the sound of a newborn baby's cry. The EMT quickly wrapped John in the warming blanket.

"Here's your son, Amy," the EMT told her with a smile as she placed John in Amy's arms. She stared down at her baby with happy tears streaming down her cheeks and a look of wonder and maternal love came over her face. Amy just smiled, unaware that the second EMT was busy tying off the umbilical cord. Ricky likewise was staring at his son with a look of wonder and amazement. _I have a son. I'm somebody's dad!_

"Would you like to cut the cord, dad?" the second EMT asked him. Ricky pulled his eyes away from his crying son to look at the man. He looked at Ava as if to ask for instructions. When she just smiled at him he turned to look at Anne and silently ask for her permission, not sure he had a right to do what the EMT was offering him the chance to do. She tearfully smiled at him and nodded her head. Ricky took the surgical scissors the EMT offered him and cut his son's umbilical cord where instructed to. Amy hadn't taken her eyes off her son and Ricky quickly returned his attention to John, who had stopped crying and was just looking at them. Amy felt pressure in her abdomen and looked at Ava quickly.

"Ava…" she began nervously.

"It's okay, Amy," Ava assured her. "Even though you've just delivered this little guy your body still needs to deliver the placenta," Ava informed her. Ricky's stomach turned over at this revelation. _They really should've covered what actually __**happens**__ during labor in sex ed. I will __**never**__ look at sex and childbirth the same way ever again!_ _It's one thing to know sex ends in childbirth and it's a long, painful process. But had I known __**exactly**__ what childbirth entailed for the girl I never would've had sex with Amy without a condom._ John suddenly cooed, yawned, and then went to sleep. _I guess it was a long day for him too._ As Ricky watched his son sleep in Amy's arms he knew he wouldn't have used a condom even if he'd had one. He wouldn't trade having his son for anything. _I wish there was a less painful way for you to get here but I'm glad you're here, John. I love you._

Amy delivered the placenta in a matter of minutes and the EMTs got her and John cleaned up a little. The elevator wasn't big enough to accommodate the stretcher so the EMTs opted to lift Amy up and set her on the floor and then help her up onto the stretcher once they climbed out. Ricky slide out from behind Amy and climbed out first to hold John while the EMTs boosted Amy up the six inches to the floor level so she could sit on it. Ava gathered everyone's bags and waited for her turn to climb out. Anne helped Amy stand up while the EMTs climbed out of the elevator. One of them helped Ava climb out and then both EMTs helped Amy up onto the stretcher. The secured her and she reached for John. Ricky handed him to her and three of them accompanied the stretcher as it made its way to the freight elevator to go down to the first floor. Once everyone was piled in the female EMT hit the down button and the doors quietly slid closed. Ava handed Ricky his shopping bag and jacket and then turned to hand Amy's purse and sweater to Anne.

"So you must be Ava." Anne said with a smile; Ava nodded. "I'm glad you were there for her today. I would've been out of my mind with worry is she and Ricky were trapped in there all alone when her labor started." Anne began to get teary eyed. She leaned forward and gave Ava a hug. "Thank you." Ava hugged her back tightly and then pulled back to face her with a knowing smile.

"From one mom to another, you're welcome."

"So what are you gonna name the little guy?" the male EMT asked Amy.

"John Nathaniel Juergens," she told him with a smile, not taking her eyes off John for a second. Everyone smiled down at the new mother and her little bundle of joy. The elevator reached the first floor and the EMTs pushed the stretcher towards their ambulance. Realizing that riding with Amy would cause either Anne or Ricky to leave their vehicle at the mall and have to come back for it later, they both decided to meet the ambulance at the hospital.

"I'll see you two in a little bit, okay?" Anne told Amy and then turned to smile at John and caress his cheek for a moment. Amy nodded in understanding. "We'll call your dad and Ashley after we get you two all settled." She kissed Amy's forehead and then nodded to let the EMTs know they could hoist the stretcher into the ambulance. Anne turned to Ricky. "See you at the hospital." He nodded and quickly dashed to his car, anxious to hold his son again.


	5. Inquiring Minds Wanna Know

Anne, Ricky and Ava all managed to find parking spots close to the main entrance of the hospital and had parked and reached it just as the EMTs were unloading Amy's stretcher. John was still asleep and Amy was clutching him close to her chest.

"15 year old female. Delivered her son in an elevator at the mall without complications. Vital signs of both are still strong," the female EMT rattled off to the ER doctor as she and her partner guided the stretcher into the ER.

"Amy!" a chorus of voices cried out, startling her and John. He began wailing his displeasure at being scared awake.

"Let's put them in bay 3 and double check that everything's fine," the doctor stated, pointing the EMTs in the direction of the bay before turning back to face Amy's apparent entourage. Anne had kept George updated on Amy's condition while she'd been at the mall waiting for the EMTs to get her out. At some point during the night Amy's phone had died and Anne had been on pins and needles when she couldn't reach her daughter directly. When Ben, Madison and Lauren couldn't reach Amy's cell they each had called the house and George filled them in on what had happened. When Anne called to tell him Amy was on her way to the hospital he called her best friends and boyfriend, who called the rest of their rag-tag group of friends, and they were all waiting in the ER when Amy arrived.

"Only family may stay with Amy until we get her and the baby checked out and settled into a room." George and Ashley stepped forward to join Anne and the three of them started making their way back while everyone else took a seat and waited. Ricky plopped down in a chair and slouched, exhausted but still too wound up to sleep just yet. He wanted to make sure Amy and John were okay before he went home to get some sleep. Madison was too curious to sit still quietly and moved to a chair closer to Ricky.

"So. Did she have the baby in the elevator?" Everyone but Ben turned shocked faces to Madison before looking at Ricky.

"She had the baby in an elevator?" Henry asked in disbelief. Ricky just nodded. "Did you like, see anything? What was it like?" Alice punched his arm and Ben glared at him. "What? Like no one else was wondering," he said, rubbing his arm. Ricky didn't elaborate, which made Ben nervous, and a little upset. _First he has sex with her and then he gets to be there for the birth!?_ Ben thought with a frown as he looked away from Ricky to scowl at the floor. Henry's question piqued Jack's curiosity.

"Well, did you?" Grace gave Jack an irritated and disgusted look and he shrugged. "What? I'm curious. Sue me." He threw his hands up in a gesture of surrender. Grace shook her head at him and then turned back to face Ricky.

"Well aren't you gonna tell us **anything** about it?" Adrian pressed, irritation lacing her voice. She couldn't explain it but she was mad that Ricky had basically spent the night with Amy even though they were sorta together and annoyed that he hadn't bothered to call to at least let her know he was alright after the quakes hit. Ricky just shook his head. George came over to the group and everyone gave him their full attention.

"Okay. So Amy and John are okay."

"Awwwww, John! How cute!" Madison squealed. George smiled and continued speaking.

"So they're moving them up to the maternity ward and then you all can go in and see them once they're settled," he said with a smile, remarkably giddy about being a grandpa. "Oh and Ricky?" Ricky sat up at attention and started to feel worried when he noticed the confused look on George's face. "Amy said go eat something and don't forget to get your shoelace back from Ava." George shrugged, letting Ricky know he had no idea what the message meant but Ricky started laughing and shaking his head. Another woman joined him in laughter and walked over to the group; she handed Ricky back his shoelace with a smile. Everyone shared a look of confusion, trying to figure out what was so funny. George just rolled his eyes. "I'll go up and see if Amy's all settled and then come and get you guys." George turned and jogged towards the elevator.

"Wanna hit the cafeteria?" Ava asked Ricky. He stood up and nodded, a smile still on his face. Ricky and Ava grabbed themselves some lunch and started heading back to the waiting room when Ava grabbed him arm and directed him to the elevator.

"Where are we going?"

"To see Amy."

"But how do we know what room she's in?"

"I work here," she told him with a smile as they stepped into the elevator and she pressed the number for the maternity floor. Ava went straight to the nurses' station when they arrived at the sixth floor. She greeted her co-worker and asked for Amy's room number. They made their way down the hall and Ava knocked on the open door. Amy greeted her with a smile. She had taken a shower and was getting situated in bed, John cooing softly from the basinet next to it as Ashley played with her nephew's little fists.

"Hi, Ava!" Amy greeted her cheerfully but tiredly. "How'd you know what room I was in?"

"I work here," Ava told her with a smile. "Plus, I wanted to let you know that I took Ricky to the cafeteria to get him something to eat and I gave him back his shoelace." Ricky held it up to show her as proof and she giggled.

"I'll go let everyone know what room you're in," George announced. He kissed her forehead and then headed to the elevator.

"Ava, thanks again for everything."

"You're welcome, Amy."

"I don't know how I'll ever thank you," she said, tearing up slightly. Ava walked over to her bedside and bent down to give her a hug.

"You just take care of John and make sure you tell him the fantastic story of the day he was born when he gets older," she told Amy with a wink. Amy smiled and nodded.

"Before you go, would you like to hold John?"

"I would love to." She picked John up from his basinet and cradled him close. "Hello John Nathaniel Juergens. I saw the top of your head this morning and it's nice to see the cute little face that goes with it." Everyone chuckled and John just stared at her. "Now I know you're not gonna do it on purpose but your mommy was really scared today when you decided to come out early so try not to spook her too much from now on, 'kay?" Ava handed John to Amy and left with one final wave. Ricky had just sat down on the end of the bed while Anne and Ashley made themselves comfortable on the room's sofa when Amy and John's welcoming committee came piling into the room. Madison, Lauran, Grace and Alice erupted into a chorus of 'awwwwwwww' and Amy turned John so everyone could see him.

"Everybody, this is John Nathaniel Juergens," she announced with a smile. Everyone took turns coming close to get a better look at John and offered Amy their congratulations. Ben held John for a few moments but he started fussing and George quickly stepped in to rescue Ben.

"So did you really have him in an elevator?" Adrian asked. Everyone turned to give her a disapproving look. She glared back. "What!? Madison asked Ricky in the waiting room and he didn't say anything and inquiring minds wanna know!" She turned back to Amy. "So…?"

"Yes, I had him in an elevator. Ricky and I were inside when the first quake hit and the elevator got stuck. I went into labor shortly after and was in the middle of having him when the EMTs finally got there," she calmly explained.

"So what'd you guys do for all that time, besides you being in labor I mean?" Adrian pressed.

"Talked, and I napped a little." Amy didn't feel like recounting the experience, and part of her felt like she couldn't. It had been a very personal experience that she had shared with the father of her baby. It was just the two of them when they conceived John and it was just the two of them, for the most part, when he was born. Thinking about what she'd just gone through reminded her of how tired she was. "And speaking of naps I could really use one right now you guys." Everyone took the hint and began filing out, taking one last look at John as George placed him in his basinet. Her parents each kissed her forehead and promised to be back after Anne went home and showered and they all grabbed something to eat. Ben and Ricky were the last two to leave. Just before Ricky walked out of the room she called out to him. "Ricky, I wanna talk to you for a sec." Ben stopped and gave Amy a questioning look. "Alone," she said, giving Ben a pointed look. He walked out and headed down the hall while Ricky came closer to her bed. She scooted over and patted a spot near her and Ricky sat down.

"Thanks, for everything you did for me yesterday and today," she told him with a smile. He smiled back and shook his head.

"You don't have to thank me, Amy. It's the least I could do." His voice cracked and he stared at the sheets.

"What's wrong, Ricky?" He was quiet for a few moments. "Ricky?" He took a deep breath to steady his emotions before facing her.

"You know how they teach us in Sex Ed that sex leads to babies and the babies get out when the woman gives birth?" Amy nodded her head slowly, not knowing where this was going. "Well they left out a few things," he informed her sarcastically, running a hand through his hair. "A few things I didn't find out until I actually experienced a woman going through labor and childbirth! I couldn't believe I'd done that to you, Amy, and I couldn't believe that some women go through it more than once!" He had to stop and take another deep breath. "Amy, you were amazing in that elevator and I'll never be able to thank or repay you for having my son and letting me be a part of his life. What I did yesterday, well, and today I guess, doesn't begin to make for what I did to you and the way I treated you. So please don't thank me. Just… I meant what I promised you, Amy. I'm always gonna be there for the both of you…..if you'll let me." Amy smiled and squeezed his hand, earning a lopsided smile from him.

"We have a son, Ricky, so we're family now, for better or worse. I know you're always gonna be there for John because I saw the way you looked at him when you first held him; you're gonna be a great dad. Don't worry about making it up to me or whatever. Let's just try to be the best parents we can to John and figure out the rest as we go. Deal?"

"Deal." He got up from the bed and made his way towards the door, intending to close it behind him when he left.

"Ricky?" He turned to look back at her.

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad it was you stuck in that elevator with me." He smiled.

"Me too. Get some rest Amy." She got situated under the covers and he closed the door behind him with a small smile on his face. He turned to his right to head towards the elevator and came face to face with a scowling Ben leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

"What **exactly** happened between you two in that elevator?"


	6. Blocked

Ricky rolled his eyes and continued walking towards the elevator. Ben followed him and waited for an answer. Ricky remained silent and kept his eyes focused on the elevator doors as he pressed the down button and waited.

"Well!?"

"Well what?" Ricky said, still not looking at Ben.

"So are you still determined to just be a good dad to John or are you going after Amy again?" Ben asked him, his voice dripping with irritation. Ricky look out of the corner of his eye and glared at Ben.

"Ben, I'm too tired to have an in depth discussion with you about anything. What do you really want?"

"I wanna know what all happened in that elevator, and just how close **were** you to Amy when she had John?" Ricky rolled his eyes again and let out a frustrated huff.

"Amy told you all what happened and if you're so interested in what **actually** happens during childbirth they have these great places called libraries that are filled with these wonderful inventions called books. If you're not in the mood to take a trip to a library there's also this great thing called the internet," Ricky informed him sarcastically just as the elevator arrived. They two rode down to the first floor in tense silence. Well, tense for Ben anyway; Ricky was too tired to pay him anymore attention. When the elevator doors opened Ricky walked out without a word or glance towards Ben and headed to the parking lot to get in his car, go home, and get some sleep, but sleep would have to wait because as soon as he got home his mother physically and verbally pounced on him. When Margaret heard the front door open she rushed to it and embraced Ricky the moment she saw him, briefly. She quickly let go and started scolding him.

"Why didn't you call me to let me know where you were and what was going on!? When I couldn't reach you I reached out to the Juergens' and George filled me in. You were stuck in an elevator for hours and didn't think at any point your mother might wanna know that you're alright!? Especially considering we had not one but two earthquakes plus an aftershock!?" before Ricky could respond she enveloped him in another hug. "Thank goodness you're okay. Just call next time, alright?" Ricky nodded and Margaret released him. "So, how are Amy and the baby? What'd she name him?" Ricky smiled.

"They're both fine and she named him John." Margaret smiled, happy to see her son so happy and to know her grandson was healthy. Ricky yawned and Margaret ushered him towards his room.

"You've had a long night. I called Bunny at the butcher shop to let her know you wouldn't be in today so you just shower and get some rest." Ricky nodded and headed into his room to grab a change of clothes. He felt a little more relaxed after his shower and sleepily headed towards his room. He pulled out his cell for the first time since Amy had gone into labor and saw that, sure enough, he had a bunch of missed calls from his mom as well as from Adrian, Ben and Grace. His battery was low so he plugged it into his charger and then crawled under the covers. He was out as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Ricky woke up six hours later with a nagging feeling that he was forgetting something important. He looked around his room for several minutes trying to remember what that something was as his brain slowly registered that he was now awake. In a flash it all came back to him. _I'm a dad. I have a son. His name is John and I was there when his mother gave birth to him._ He covered his face with one of his pillows and groaned into it, remembering seeing and feeling Amy give birth. _How could I be so stupid and irresponsible? They keep telling me sex isn't a game and I get it now; I'll never forget it either._ He rolled himself out of bed and got dressed. He wanted to get back to the hospital and see Amy and John before visiting hours were over for the day. He headed to the kitchen for a quick snack and found Margaret cleaning up some dishes. She greeted him with a smile.

"Have a nice nap?" He nodded and grabbed an apple out of the fruit bowl.

"I'm gonna go visit Amy and John," he informed her as he made his way towards the door. Margaret nodded in acknowledgement of his statement and he was on his way. He quickly made it back to the hospital and was soon walking towards Amy's room. The door was open and he could hear her talking with her parents. Amy noticed him first and greeted him with a tired smile.

"Hey, Amy. How are you felling?"

"Sore and tired." She looked over at the couch in her suite where Ashley was currently holding John and talking baby talk to him while playing with his hands.

"How's our little guy doing?" Ricky asked her, even though he had followed her gaze and was also looking at John when he asked the question.

"He's good. The doctor said he and I can go home in a couple of days. Since he didn't get his booster shots as soon as possible after his birth they just wanna make sure he doesn't have a bad reaction to any of them." Amy and John both yawned, causing George to chuckle.

"I guess that's our cue to let these two get some more rest." He kissed Amy's forehead and then John's before heading out into the hallway. Anne did likewise and then Ashley handed John to Ricky before joining her parents.

"Well see in the morning sweetie," Anne told her before leaving. Ricky kissed his son's forehead before placing him in his basinet. He turned to Amy.

"I'll come by and see you tomorrow." She nodded. "Will you call me if he has a bad reaction to anything?" he asked nervously.

"Of course," she reassured him with a smile. He returned it before heading out of the room, closing the door behind him. Amy got more comfortable, closed her eyes, and fell back asleep. Ricky was lost in thought and his body went into autopilot as he rode the elevator down to the first floor, got into his car, drove home, and then walked into his room and sat down on his couch.

_Amy didn't deserve to go through all that at fifteen. I know women have babies everyday but childbirth is really painful!_ He absentmindedly flexed his fingers, remembering how numb they'd gotten after Amy had squeezed them on and off for hours. _As much as I love my son I've gotta be more careful. No, I've gotta just stop sleeping around. Of all the girls I've slept with, and sometimes sleep with again, I'm not willing to put any of them through what I just put Amy through._ He mentally reviewed the names and faces of his occasional hookups and tried to imagine himself back in that elevator with each of them and cringed. _I don't wanna have a baby with any of them and I can't picture myself being there for them like I was for Amy. _He blanched as he made a realization. _Maybe it's time I stop sleeping with girls I'm not willing to have a baby with. If I can't picture myself being there for them then I shouldn't be the one who gets them pregnant!_ Ricky quickly pulled out this phone and brought up his contacts list and frantically began deleting the number of every girl who was just a hookup. With all former hookups' numbers no longer in his phone, he had plenty of open speed dial slots. He added Amy's cell as his new number one and added her family members as well. He had just finished when Margaret called him upstairs for dinner. He was quiet during the meal and Margaret worried he might still be tired.

"Ricky, are you alright sweetheart? Or are you still just tired?" Ricky gave her a small smile to reassure her.

"I'm fine, mom. Just thinking about some things."

"Alright. Anything you wanna share?" He shrugged.

"I just keep replaying what happened in that elevator: Amy being scared when she went into labor early, Ava doing her best to help keep us both calm and distracted, Amy giving birth to John. The whole experience has just got me thinking about a lot of things."

"Who's Ava?" his dad asked. Ricky blinked and looked at his father in confusion before he remembered that he hadn't told his parents any details about the whole ordeal.

"Ava was the name of the woman who was trapped in the elevator with us. Thankfully she happened to be a nurse who'd both given birth and delivered a few babies on the job so she knew what to do." Ricky suddenly got a thoughtful look. _What was she gonna need my shoelace for?_ he wondered. _I'll just Google it before I go to bed._

"You alright, son?" his dad asked. Ricky nodded.

"Yeah. I just remembered I need to look something up online before I go to bed." His parents dropped the discussion and they finished their meal quietly. He got up to help clear the table but Margaret stopped him.

"You only took a short nap so I think it would be wise for you to turn in early tonight. We can clean up so go on, scoot." He thanked her with a smile.

"Okay. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Ricky," his dad told him. "Goodnight sweetheart," Margaret added, heading to the kitchen with a stack of their dinner dishes. Ricky quickly brushed his teeth and got changed into pajamas. He opened his laptop and Googled shoelaces and childbirth. He was shocked to discover that women not making it to the hospital in time to deliver their babies wasn't that rare of an occurrence. He was even more surprised to find that, even with all the medical advances available today, some women actually **chose** to deliver their baby at home. He managed to find out that Ava had asked him to remove his shoelace because it can be used to tie off the umbilical cord in a pinch. _Again, something they forget to mention in Sex Ed_ he thought with a smile. He turned off his computer and climbed into bed just as his cellphone was vibrating. A number was on the screen but no name. He answered it anyway, thinking it might be the hospital.

"Hello?"

"What, you couldn't even call and apologize for not telling me why you were busy last night?" Ricky inwardly groaned and flopped back onto his pillows; it was Adrian.

"I was a little too preoccupied about to become a dad and all," he told her sarcastically.

"Fine. Are you coming over tonight?"

"No."

"No?"

"No, Adrian. I'm tired and I'm going to sleep. Goodnight." He ended the call and put his phone down on his nightstand. Adrian stared at her phone in disbelief. _Did he just hang up on me!?_ She called him right back. Ricky saw her number on the screen again and blocked it. His last thought as he rolled over to go to sleep was _I'll break up with her tomorrow._ Adrian was livid that Ricky was ignoring her call. _So you're just gonna blow me off are you? We'll just see about that!_


	7. Who's It Gonna Be?

Ben was too anxious to sleep. He kept replaying parts of Amy and Ricky's conversation over and over in his head.

"_We have a son, Ricky, so we're family now, for better or worse…Let's just try to be the best parents we can to John and figure out the rest as we go. Deal?"_

"_Deal."_

"_Ricky?"_

"_Yeah?"_

"_I'm glad it was you stuck in that elevator with me."_

"_Me too."_

Ben turned to look at his alarm clock and saw that it was 5:30am. He tried to fall back asleep but his mind wouldn't let him. _It __**had**__ to have been something big. I mean, she never mentioned wanting him there when it was time. If I'd been there instead would __**we**__ have gotten closer? And why was she happy that he had been there instead of me?_ His head was swimming with what-ifs. He closed his eyes but sleep eluded him. He watched the numbers on his alarm clock change and finally got up to get dressed at 6:00am. _I'll go see Amy and John before school and ask her how she feels about Ricky_ _now_ he thought resolutely as he descended the stairs for a quick breakfast before heading to the hospital.

Meanwhile Ricky was just rolling out of bed, still feeling a little tired but knowing he had to go to school. Deciding to stop by and see Amy before school gave him the motivation to quickly get dressed, gather up his school things and head upstairs for breakfast. He wolfed down a breakfast of pancakes, scrambled eggs and sausage and left for the hospital, stopping to give his mom a quick goodbye kiss on the cheek. Amy was up and playing with John when Ben walked in. She greeted him with a smile but it quickly vanished when she saw his troubled expression.

"What's wrong?" Ben walked to the chair near her bed and sat down before answering. He been brooding over Amy's words for a couple of days now and he needed straight answers.

"Amy, I overheard what you said to Ricky the day you were checked into the hospital, that you were glad he was in that elevator with you instead of me. Why was that?" he asked, looking her in the eye with a serious expression.

"Because it seemed and felt right," she told him honestly as she adjusted John in her arms.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning we conceived John together and it just seemed right that we gave birth to him together, in a manner of speaking." Amy's brows knit together in confusion. "Is that why you seemed a little distracted when you came to see me yesterday? You were still upset that you didn't get to be with me for John's birth?" Ben looked way and was quiet for a few moments before slowly nodding his head. Neither of them spoke for a few minutes, both lost in thought. Amy broke the silence. "We can't do this anymore, Ben." He looked at her with confused eyes.

"Huh?"

"If you've been upset for the past two days because Ricky and I did something together as John's parents that we had no control over, you and I are gonna spend the rest of our lives arguing or walking on eggshells when Ricky and I **choose** to do something together as John's parents or **have** to get together to make a decision that concerns him." She looked up at Ben with tears in her eyes. "John comes first, Ben, and Ricky's apart of my life because he's John's father. I want you to be a part of it too because I love you, and I thought you felt the same. But it's obvious that you don't love me the same way so it's best for both of us if we end this now." The tears had started falling and Ben quickly moved to sit on the bed next to her and wipe them away. Ricky was almost to Amy's room and stopped, frowning when he heard sniffling coming from inside. He was about to dash inside to make sure she and John were okay when a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Amy! Of course I love you. How could you say that I don't!?" Amy wasn't sure how to express what she was thinking and feeling but hurt and anger came to her rescue.

"Ricky's presence bugs you for some reason and it's either because you're jealous of him or you don't trust me. Either you're jealous that he had sex with me or that my son is his biologically and so his presence will be an issue in our relationship or you don't trust me to be around him because you think that just because I've had sex with him before I'll be tempted to do it with him again! Regardless of **what** the issue is, you **do** have a major issue with our relationship and that's why you've been focusing on it for the past two days instead of how much we love each other and how we make things work now that John's here!" Ben recoiled slightly, not prepared for her to be angry at him and not sure what to say next. "I don't wanna be in a relationship where I'm gonna spend all my time trying to convince you that I love you and I'm not interested in the father of my son!" Her voice suddenly waived as fresh tears fell. "So I'm ending this before it starts to get ugly." Ben was at a loss for words. Breaking up was the last thing on his mind when he'd decided to come see her.

"Amy, I trust you, don't ever doubt that, it's Ricky I don't trust because he's still interested in you, he even told me so when I asked him for a straight answer about his intentions towards you and John, and I love you too much to just let you go without a fight." He started speaking more quickly, hoping to soothe Amy's anger and convince her not to break up with him. "Amy, you're the most amazing woman I've ever met and I wanna spend the rest of my life with you. I know it's not gonna be easy with the three of us trying to figure out how to raise John but we can do it. It's just that I was kinda hurt when you said you were happy Ricky was there instead of me, like you still have feelings for him or something." The anger and hurt in Amy's eyes stopped him and he had to clear his throat in an attempt to find his voice again, but Ricky interrupted and he didn't get a chance to continue.

"Well, do you?"


	8. Amy's Choice

Amy and Ben both turned to look at the door at the sound of Ricky's voice. Ben quickly swiveled his head back to look at Amy, desperately wanting to know her answer. Amy was still maintaining eye contact with Ricky.

"Do I what?"

"Do you still have feelings for me."

"No, not romantic ones anyway."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ben chimed in. Amy broke eye contact with Ricky to look at him with irritation.

"It means that Ricky and I went through a very emotional and exhausting experience together and I can tell from the look in his eyes when he holds John that he understands what John means to me and for those reasons we're gonna be friends, more or less, for the rest of our lives." She gave him a look that said 'satisfied?' before looking back at Ricky. "You didn't need to stop by before school. I said I'd call if he had any reactions to his shots."

"What shots?" Ben asked, feeling left out of the conversation. John started fussing and Amy turned her attention to her son instead of answering Ben's question. A nurse came in to check on Amy and saw John squirming.

"I think somebody's ready for breakfast." She turned to the boys. "Alright fellas. Momma needs some privacy." She ushered the boys out and closed the door so Amy could breastfeed John. They stood in the hallway glaring at each other.

"You are such a child, you know that?" Ricky told Ben with a sarcastic expression on his face.

"Oh and what, being one year older than me makes you such a grownup?" Ben shot back. Ricky rolled his eyes.

"Ben, you had the chance to walk away when you found out Amy was having my baby but you **chose** to stay, even after taking a little break to think it over you chose to stay with her. Don't you think being a teenage mother with all the drama she's got going on at home is enough for her to worry about without you constantly pouting because I'm around spending time with **my** son and helping out **my** son's mother? They're **my** responsibility, Ben, not yours and I **want** to be responsible for them, in any way Amy needs or wants me to be. Get over yourself and grow up!" Amy was in the middle of feeding John but she, and the nurse, could hear the boys arguing and she rolled her eyes.

"They're both idiots." The nurse tried to hide a smile and they heard Ben make another accusation.

"Are you just doing this to try and sleep with her again?"

"No." Ben gave him a disbelieving look. "I'm not, Ben. After witnessing a woman give birth sex is the last thing on my mind."

"Ah hah! So you did look!" Ricky gave him a confused look.

"What are you talking about?"

"Jack and Henry asked if you saw anything and you know what they meant was did you look as she was having the baby. If you're not interesting in sex anymore it's because you looked!" Ben informed Ricky triumphantly, as though he'd just solved the world's most challenging riddle." Ricky looked at Ben like he'd lost his marbles. Amy covered her chest with a blanket and turned to the nurse.

"Would you please ask those two morons to come in here?" The nurse chuckled and walked towards the door just as Ricky scolded Ben.

"You're an idiot." The nurse reopened the door and gave them a disapproving look.

"Amy wants to see the both of you," she said sternly and held the door open. The boys rushed in but slowed their steps when they realized Amy was still feeding John. The nurse walked out, closing the door behind her and smiling. Amy glared at them for a moment before speaking.

"Ben, let's get two things cleared up right now. One, Ricky was sitting behind me as I gave birth so he didn't see anything. Two, even if Ricky **did** have intentions of trying to sleep with me again I just had a baby and I'm not such a mindless idiot that I'd jump in bed with him the first chance I get. And since you have such a low opinion of my morals, character, and self-control you can go now, and feel free to lose my phone number." Ricky and Ben were both shocked at her words and gave each other a quick uncertain glance before turning back to face Amy. Was this the same sweet and quiet Amy that they knew and were attracted to? _I didn't know she had it in her, but I like it_ Ricky thought, using every ounce of his self-control not to smile.

"Amy, I…"Ben began but Amy cut him off.

"Goodbye, Benjamin. I appreciate you sticking by my side through my pregnancy and thank you for everything you've done for me. Unfortunately it appears our relationship has too many obstacle and issues for it to work out. Goodbye." Her eyes were sad and hurt but her voice was strong and unwavering; she'd made up her mind. Ben was at a loss for words.

"I…..I guess I'll see you at school then?" he asked hopefully. Amy didn't move a muscle so Ben walked out of the room silently, crestfallen, and headed towards the elevators. Ricky wasn't sure what to say next so he nervously looked at his shoes and shuffled his feet.

"Ricky." He slowly raised his eyes to look at her. "You're not responsible for me, just John; I'm responsible for me," she informed him calmly.

"You're my son's mother; of **course** I'm responsible for you." Amy shook her head.

"Ricky, we're just two teenagers who conceived a child together and will work as a team to take care of our son. I was serious about not having romantic feelings for you, Ricky. The way you treated me after that night made it pretty clear that while we may have been attracted to each other at band camp that's all it was: attraction. There was no real love or emotion there and I'm not interested in dating someone who doesn't care about me." Ricky opened his mouth to protest but Amy stopped him with a clarification. "Romantically. Ricky, we share a unique bond and that bond's name is John but we don't have to be a couple to be a good family for him. And after what we just went through I believe that in time we'll truly become good friends as we get to know each other better while we're raising our son." John finished nursing and Amy pulled him out from under the blanket and adjusted her gown. She placed a small spit-up cloth over her shoulder and began to burp John. "Don't feel obligated to be responsible for me; just be there to help me raise our son."

"I'll do that, Amy," he told her with a sincere expression. They shared a smile before Ricky left to head to school. _But I mean it too, Amy. I __**want**__ to take care of you too._


	9. Betting on the Boys

Ricky and Ben went through the motions of going to class for the first half of the day, both lost in thought. Adrian didn't manage to corner Ricky in the hallway until lunch time. She grabbed his arm and pulled him out the doors into the courtyard.

"What!?" he asked her, irritation clearly evident in his voice and facial expression.

"So are we doing this or what?"

"Doing what?"

"Are you still gonna come over or will you be too busy playing daddy?" Anger flashed in Ricky's eyes before he managed to bring his temper back under control.

"We're done, Adrian; my son and Amy come first now. Besides, I'm not interested in having sex with you anymore so see you around." He turned to walk off and go eat his lunch but Adrian grabbed his arm to stop him.

"We both know you're **always** interested in sex so I don't buy that. What's the **real** reason you blew me off last night?" Ricky snatched his arm out of her grasp.

"I mean it, Adrian, I don't wanna have sex with you anymore and I'm gonna focus on taking care of John and Amy. That means I don't have time to play games with you." Adrian gave him a knowing smile and crossed her arms.

"Oh please, Ricky. You're not the kind of guy that commits to any girl who doesn't put out and Amy's not the kinda girl who's gonna sleep with you just because you're helping take care of her kid."

"**Our** kid," he interrupted her with a scowl. Adrian wasn't fazed and continued.

"If anything having you around's just gonna remind her of how she became a teenage mother and she'll hate you for it."

"Adrian, have you ever given birth?" She gave him an exasperated look.

"Of course not."

"Until you do you won't understand why spending time with Amy and our son is more important to me now than sleeping with you. Goodbye, Adrian." He walked off, leaving her standing there scowling at his back. _You'll be back, Underwood. We both know you will._ She turned and stormed off in the opposite direction, unaware that Joe had been eating lunch on a bench a few feet away, hidden by shrubbery, and had overheard the entire exchange. He smiled to himself and starting making plans for his next money-making venture.

Ben, Alice and Henry were eating their lunches in another part of the courtyard silently, Alice and Henry exchanging glances with each other every so often, silently communicating in an attempt to figure out who would ask Ben first. Alice decided to break the silence.

"What happened, Ben? You've been silent and down all morning."

"Amy broke up with me." Alice and Henry exchanged surprised glances and then Alice gave Ben's shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

"I'm sure it was just hormones talking. You know it's fairly common for new mothers to snap at people at lash out for the first several months as they adjust to caring for a newborn on very little amounts of sleep. I'm sure she'll calm down in a day or two."

"Yeah," Henry added. "I mean, after everything you guys have been through during her pregnancy and all I'm sure she didn't mean it." Ben shook his head.

"She said she didn't wanna be in a relationship with me if she was gonna have to constantly convince me she wasn't interested in Ricky." Alice sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Ben, are you still not over all that? You know she loves you so what's the problem you have with Ricky? Is it that he slept with her and you haven't? Because you know that happened before she even met you right?" Ben huffed in frustration.

"I know! It's just that even though I love her and wanna spend the rest of my life with her she'll always be tied to Ricky because of John and since he's always gonna be around for his kid there's always a chance that they'll get closer and he may try to steal her away from me." Alice smacked the back of Ben's head. "Hey! What was that for!?" Alice glared at him.

"One, you're a chauvinistic pig for thinking of Amy as a piece of property that belongs to you that someone can steal away. Two, you're an idiot for falling in love with a girl after one date. Three, you're an even bigger idiot for being so focused on someone from Amy's past that you forgot to just enjoy your relationship with her in the present after she made it clear to you that **you're** the guy she wants to be with and **not** the father of her baby. No wonder she broke up with you. And I mean for reasons one and three, not two." Ben sighed in resignation.

"I know I'm an idiot but I'm an idiot who's in love and all I wanna do is find a way for her to forgive me and take me back. After all, I love her so eventually she'll see that I'm a better choice than Ricky, right?" Alice smacked the back of his head again. "What was **that** for?"

"For not listening to me the first time. Didn't I just say that you should stop focusing on Ricky? It's not some kind of competition where the winner gets to be with Amy; she's a human being not a carnival prize." The three friends continued to eat their lunches in silence, unaware that Joe had overheard their conversation. He smiled to himself and began to send several text messages as he made his way to the library to use the computers.

Having overheard Ricky's declaration to Adrian, Joe had intended to inform Ben and then start betting pools to see which guy Amy would ultimately pick and how long it would take her to do so. However, since he'd just found out that Amy had broken up with Ben and he intended to win her back, he could skip the step of roping Ben into his little game. Joe found a computer in a back corner away from prying eyes on logged onto his email account. He started sending out emails to a select group of his fellow students explaining the betting pools he was starting along with a list of rules, which were as follows:

Each better had to pick Team Ricky or Team Ben and there was no switching after choosing

Each better was forbidden to talk to anyone on the opposing team in an attempt to obtain any information

Each better was forbidden to talk to any friends or acquaintances of the opposing team captain for information

Each better could only place one bet in the time pool (of how long it would take Amy to pick one of the guys)

When Joe arrived home from school that afternoon his email inbox was flooded with interested betters. He sent each respondent an email informing them when and where at school he'd meet them tomorrow to begin collecting their names, team selections, time guesses and money. Things at school were about to get interesting again.


	10. Homecoming Heartburn

Ricky and Ben worked together silently at the butcher shop after school. Ricky was anxious to finish his shift and then go to visit Amy and John. Ben was sulking because he knew where Ricky was going after work and he wouldn't be able to join him. As Ben suspected, as soon as Ricky clocked out he headed home, showered and changed, and headed to the hospital. When he walked in Anne was holding John while Ashley and Amy chatted. She smiled at him when he walked in. He returned it and then focused on John. Anne smiled knowingly and handed John to him.

"Hey, buddy. Have you been a good boy for mommy today?" Amy's heart melted, at both the sight of John in his father's arms and at his concern for her. John just stared at Ricky and cooed. He turned to face Amy. "So are you guys going home tomorrow?" She nodded. "When will you be coming back to school?"

"In two weeks." She shifted to a slightly more comfortable position on the bed as he nodded in understanding.

"Do you want me to pick up your homework for you?"

"There's no need. My teachers are gonna put my homework in a folder in the main office and my mom's gonna pick up for me at the end of the week."

"I don't mind picking it up for you, since I'll be at school and then coming over to see John anyway." Amy looked at her mother.

"It would save me a trip," Anne said with a smile and Ricky nodded.

"If you tell me your schedule I'll get your assignments for you."

"Thanks, Ricky," she said while jotting down her classes on a nearby notepad.

"No problem." They shared a smile and then they all took turns holding John and chatting with Amy. Ricky headed out an hour later to get something to eat and finish his homework. "I'll see you tomorrow," he told Amy before turning and smiling at his son. "I'll see you tomorrow too, buddy."

"He's gonna be a good dad," George said after Ricky had left. Everyone smiled their agreement before heading home for the night. The next morning Ricky walked into school early with a little bounce in his step, happy that Amy and his son were going home that morning. _I'll stop by at lunch to see them, and bring home some of her assignments._ He made a quick stop at his locker before heading to Amy's classes to tell her teacher's he'd be picking up her assignments for the next two weeks. As more students began to arrive he noticed quite a few people openly staring at him and whispering but since it was nothing new he just shrugged and ignored them. Alice, however, noticed the students starring at Ben.

"Something's up." Ben and Henry looked at her with confused eyes. "People are staring at you and the only reason people gossiped about you was because you were dating Amy. You guys breaking up isn't stare-worthy so something's going on and I'm gonna find out what." She walked off in search of Madison, leaving the two boys just as confused as before. She located Madison and Lauren near their lockers. "What's going on around here?" The girls looked at her with confused eyes as well.

"What do you mean?" Lauren asked her.

"People are staring at Ben for some reason and I know it's not because he and Amy just broke up. So what's going on around here?" she directed her question at Madison.

"Why are you looking at me?" she whined. Lauren rolled her eyes.

"Because you can't keep a secret," Lauren informed her.

"Hey! You're no better at it than me!" She turned to face Alice. "But this time I don't know what's going on. Why would people care that Ben and Amy broke up?" Alice shrugged.

"That's the point. I don't think they would, which is why I know something's up around here. What do they know that we don't?" Lauren and Madison shrugged.

"Who else would know the latest gossip and tell us about it?" Lauren asked. Madison's eyes widened in realization.

"Joe! It's gonna cost us but I bet he could tell us, or at least find out." The two girls nodded in agreement and went in search of Joe. They found him coming out of the AV room and stopped him. Lauren spoke up for the trio.

"Joe, we need your help."

"It's gonna cost 'ya," he informed them.

"We know. How much?"

"Depends. What do you need?"

"Information."

"Do I have to do anything special to obtain said information?"

"No."

"Then that'll be thirty even, ten from each of you." The girls took out their money but Lauren stopped Madison and Alice from just handing it over to Joe. The three of them gave her a questioning look.

"You get half now and half when you give us the info." Joe smiled.

"Cautious and knows how to play hard ball. I like it." He nodded and Lauren counted out fifteen dollars and handed it to Joe. "So what info. are you ladies after?" Alice answered.

"People are staring at Ben and whispering and I know it's not just because he and Amy broke up. Something else is going on around here that involves Ben and we wanna know what it is."

"Hmmm…" Joe thought for a moment. _Well since I'm __**technically**__ neutral and if I said anything it would __**technically**__ be given to both teams at the same time….I may as well._ He smiled at the girls. "Okay it's like this. I overheard Ricky and Adrian talking yesterday at lunch about how they were breaking up for good so he could be a good dad and take care of Amy. Then I overheard Ben tell you and Henry Amy broke up with him but he wanted to win her back. So…..I started a betting pool to see who Amy's gonna pick and when. But there are some rules."

"You did what!?" Madison screeched at him while Lauren and Alice both gave Joe a look that said they wanted to deck him. He put his hands up defensively.

"Hey, I'm an opportunist and we live in a capitalistic society. But like I said, there are some rules participants have to follow to place a bet."

"Oh really. What rules?" Lauren angrily asked him, crossing her arms.

"They have to pick Team Ricky or Team Ben, they can't get info out of anyone on the other team about how their guy's doing and they can't get any info out of the guys' friends, that would be you guys, and they can't change their bets or team choice once they make it."

"You're twisted and heartless, you know that?" Madison informed him with her hands on her hips. He just shrugged.

"Maybe, maybe not, but I'm never bored." He put his hand out toward Lauren. "I'll take the rest of my fee now." Lauren snatched her hand away and divided the money back up between her, Madison and Alice.

"As if. You weren't required to do anything to obtain said information and since you're playing with people's emotions and lives for sport and profit consider this a life lesson," she informed him with a sarcastic smile and walked off, Madison and Alice following her. When they were out of earshot Madison sighed.

"We have to tell them you know."

"I don't know," Lauren said, causing the other two girls to look at her in disbelief. "Well, think about it. If the guys know what's going on they might start competing against each other and basically Joe wins. If Amy finds out they're being nice to her to win a bet she'll end up hating both of them and she has to see Ricky because he's John's dad. No one wins here."

"Yeah, but if we say nothing and Amy finds out from someone else it could still blow up in all our faces," Madison pointed out.

"True, but I think we've still gotta tell them before things get outta hand. Right now I'm pretty sure none of them know what's going on since Joe only found out what he found out yesterday afternoon." The three girls nodded in agreement.

"Let's just hope this all blows over quickly," Lauren said as she and Alice took out their phones to call Amy and Ben respectively while walking away from each other. Amy picked up on the second ring.

"Hey, Lauren. I can't talk for long because I'm getting ready to head home with John."

"This won't take long but I've got to tell you something."

"What's that?" Lauren took a deep breath and spoke quickly so Amy couldn't interrupt her.

"Yesterday at lunch Joe overheard Ben tell his friends you two broke up but he wanted to win you back and he overheard Ricky tell Adrian he was breaking up her to take care of you and John. So Joe decided to start a betting pool at school to see which guy you'd pick and how long it'd take you to do so. I know all this 'cuz Alice said she noticed people staring and whispering at Ben and she came to us to find out what was up and when we didn't know the three of us tracked down Joe and he told us himself, and we're pretty sure neither Ben or Ricky knows about this because Joe started the pool yesterday afternoon but we thought you should know." Madison was listening in and added her two cents.

"Joe just told us, Amy, and we called you straight away and Alice called Ben. We weren't sure who should tell Ricky though. Do you want us to tell him when we see him today?" Amy was furious.

"No. I'll call him," she said tightly before ending the all and doing just that. Ricky picked up on the first ring.

"Hey. Are you alright? Is something wrong with John?" he asked worriedly.

"We're fine. I just got a call from Lauren and Madison. Apparently Joe thinks our lives are a game and started a betting pool about us," she informed him angrily.

"What!?"

"Yeah. Apparently he heard you break up with Adrian so you could take care of John and me and he heard Ben tell his friends we broke up but he wants to win me back so Joe started a betting pool to see which guy I'd pick and how long it would take me to do it," she explained, her voice still saturated with anger. Ricky was now angry as well

"I'm gonna punch that guy!"

"No you're not."

"Why not!?"

"Because he's not worth it. You're gonna be a good dad to your son because you love him. If people choose not to or refuse to believe that then that's their problem. I'm sick of how cruel and immature our school is and I'm not gonna let it get to me anymore. You shouldn't either. We'll just have to be careful not to have any personal conversations at school so they can't gossip about us any more than usual."

"So we're just gonna ignore that the study body is gonna try and mess with the three of us just to win a bet?"

"Well now that we know why people are suddenly so interested in how we're doing and how our son's doing we know not to answer those kinds of questions and we can assume anyone who asks has placed a bet."

"True. But I don't know how Ben's gonna react when he finds out. He might still try to win you back just because he still loves you." Amy sighed.

"Alice called Ben the same time the girls called me so he knows. And I don't care how he reacts because I don't wanna be in a relationship with someone that paranoid and jealous, love or no love." Her parents walked in the door just then. "I've gotta go, Ricky. It's time for me to head home."

"Okay." He thought about telling Amy about his plans to stop by at lunch with some of her homework. Glancing around and noticing a few people staring at him and whispering he changed his mind, just in case anyone was listening in on his conversation. "I'll see you later." He hung up his phone and gave the students staring at him a tight smile before heading off to class. Ben was having a similar reaction to news of the bet from Alice.

"What is wrong with people at this school? Don't they have anything better to do than gossip about people they know nothing about?"

"I don't know, buddy" Henry told him in an attempt to comfort him. "There's nothing you can do about this bet business now though. You just gotta wait 'til it blows over." Ben sighed sadly.

"But now if I do anything to try to win back Amy's affection she's gonna think it's because of the bet."

"Maybe. But if you're serious about winning her back then you need to talk to her face to face and tell her about the bet; how and when you found out about it, so she doesn't think you're hiding anything; and then declare your intentions." Ben nodded hopefully.

"Yeah. I mean, if I'm upfront about it then she won't think I'm up to something." Henry nodded in agreement and hope began to blossom within Ben. He and Ricky did their best to ignore the stares, whispers, and smirks from their fellow students for the rest of the morning. Ricky practically bolted out of the classroom when the bell for lunch rang. He quickly stopped by Amy's morning classes to pick up her homework and then headed to his car. He unconsciously picked up speed as he neared Amy's house, anxious to see his son. Anne opened the door when he rang the front door bell and smiled at him.

"Hello, Ricky." She held the door open for him and he walked in.

"I picked up her homework from her morning classes," he informed Anne as he held out a folder with Amy's assignments in it. Anne took it from him and he followed her into the kitchen. "Did they get settled in okay?" Anne nodded.

"They're upstairs in Amy's room sleeping. Amy's so tired I'm sure she won't wake up if you wanna go in and hold John for a while." Anne told him which door led to Amy's room and he smiled his thanks before quietly heading upstairs to see his son. He slowly opened her bedroom door and stood there for several moments just smiling and taking in the scene. Amy was sound asleep, facing John's crib next to her bed. John lay inside it on his back, sound asleep as well. He walked further into her room and stopped again near the foot of her bed. _They both look so peaceful and innocent; not a care in the world. _Watching Amy sleep made him feel guilty all over again because asleep she truly looked like a sweet, innocent, fifteen year old girl and he hated himself for robbing her of some of her innocence. John twitched momentarily in his sleep and Ricky smiled at his son before turning his eyes back to Amy, his heart melting at the sight of her. _Even though I hurt you you're a lot stronger and braver than your realize, Amy._ He flashed back to being in the elevator with her. _Any woman who goes through childbirth is stronger and braver than I will ever be._ He walked to his son's crib and gently scooped him up, cradling him close to his chest.

"Hi, John. Daddy's here. I love you," he said before leaning down to kiss John's forehead. He sat in a chair next to John's crib and gently rocked his son back and forth, just staring at him lovingly and talking nonsense to him for several minutes. He was unaware that the sound of his voice had woken up Amy. She smiled at the sight of Ricky holding and talking to their sleeping infant and then giggled, startling Ricky.

"Hi," he said to her with a smile.

"Hi," she smiled back. "What are you doing here? Is school over already?" she glanced at her alarm clock just as Ricky answered.

"No. I stopped by during lunch. I brought some of your homework too. I'll get the rest at the end of the day." John started fussing and Amy started to get up. "It smells like he needs a diaper change. Where do you keep the diapers?" Amy got up and led the way to John's nursery. Ricky walked over to the changing table and changed John's diaper. Ricky picked him up and John drifted back to sleep, causing them both to chuckle. "Poor little guy's wiped out."

"Yeah," Amy chuckled. "Thankfully he sleeps most of the day right now."

"So how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay, just really tired, and sore," she told him with a slight blush. She didn't elaborate and he didn't ask for an explanation.


	11. Reality Check

Amy and Ricky had fallen into a routine of sorts over the past week. He brought half of her assignments over at lunch and spent some item with John and then he brought the rest of her assignments over later after he got off work, showered, changed, and ate some dinner. By the end of the week Ricky noticed that Amy had become short and snippy with him. He could easily see that she was tired but he wasn't sure if her attitude change was just due to a lack of sleep. They'd put John into his crib for the night and then went downstairs to tidy up, making sure to take the baby monitor with them. Ricky decided to ask Amy about her attitude.

"Hey, Amy?"

"Hmm."

"What's wrong? You've been kinda irritable lately." That was the wrong choice of words because Amy spun around and gave him a glare so cold that if looks could kill he'd already be six feet under.

"Well excuuuuuse me for not being little miss sunshine all the time. I'm soooo sorry that you're not happy with my attitude," she informed him coldly and sarcastically. She spun back around towards the sink to finish washing out some of John's bottles.

"Amy, I'm just wondering if you're irritable because you're just tired or if it's something else." She gave him another glare but he pressed his luck anyway. "Just, talk to me, Amy. Please?" She glared at him a little less coldly this time, weighing whether he was being sincere or not.

"You really wanna know?" He nodded his head rapidly. "Fine." She finished rinsing the bottles and then placed them in the bottle sterilizer machine. She dried her hands and turned around to lean against the sink and crossed her arms. Ricky leaned against the counter and gave her his full attention.

"Do you know what it's like to be a teenage mother?" He shook his head. "I wake up to my son's cries about every two hours at night to either breastfeed him or change his diaper so I'm not getting a lot of sleep at night. I'm so tired that I actually fell asleep while taking a shower last night and I'm pretty sure I woke up with mild hypothermia from the cold water. When I wake up to start my day I have to get up early so I can shower before John wakes up and needs my attention because I can't leave him alone unless he's asleep. During the day, at least right now, I have to find time to do my homework while caring for my child and just like at night I'm stopping to feed or change him every couple of hours or so and it's hard to concentrate when you're tired. Breastfeeding makes my nipples tender because they're not used to being used for their intended purpose yet and a tiny human is sucking on them on and off most of the day and night plus I start lactating every time he cries, even if he's not hungry, so now I have to remember to wear my nursing bras instead of regular ones so I don't leak through my shirts. I'm still sore you know where after having pushed out a baby so I'm not comfortable sitting down for long unless I'm sitting on a cushioned surface and none of my clothes fit quite right because I'm still carrying some left over baby weight so I'm not comfortable in like ninety percent of what I wear. And I'm dealing with all of this because I just laid there one night at band camp and let myself get pregnant so I'm angry at myself and too tired to really enjoy my son right now and that makes me feel like a horrible parent and person. **That's** what's wrong with me right not. Does that answer your question," she said while fighting back tears and tucking some hair behind her ear. Amy stared at Ricky, waiting for him to respond, but instead he walked over to her and enveloped her in a hug. Amy promptly burst into tears and Ricky just held her until she'd cried it all out. George came in the kitchen door and stopped when he saw them.

"I never meant to hurt you, Amy. I wish there was something I could do to make things easier for you," he told her honestly. He rubbed her back in soothing circles the way he'd seen Margaret do it when she comforted his younger foster brothers and sisters, hoping it would help. He caught George's eye and silently tried to communicate to him that he was sorry and he didn't know what else he should be doing right now to make things better. George gave Ricky a look that told him he understood the situation and what Ricky was doing at that moment was plenty. George went in search of Anne and left them alone in the kitchen. Amy clung to his shirt and continued to cry for several more minutes. Eventually her tears subsided and she sagged against Ricky, becoming dead weight; she had cried herself to sleep. Ricky didn't want to call out for George, afraid he'd wake Amy, and he'd just found out how tired she really was. He also didn't want to yell and wake up John through the baby monitor so he did the only thing he could think of. He shifted Amy to her side, bent down to place his arm under her knees, and carried her bridal style upstairs, cradling her close to his chest. George and Anne came out of the master bedroom, deep in conversation, but stopped talking when they saw Amy in Ricky's arms. Ricky turned to George as he explained.

"She cried herself to sleep and I didn't wanna wake her up." George nodded and Anne turned to him with a raised eyebrow for an explanation as Ricky continued carrying Amy to her bedroom.

"When I came in she was crying and Ricky was hugging her, saying he wished he could make things easier for her. Apparently she cried herself to sleep." Anne nodded in understanding and she and George headed downstairs to finish their discussion. Amy's bedroom door was thankfully ajar and he used his foot to gently push it open. He lowered Amy to her bed and tucked her in. She turned onto her side but didn't wake up. Ricky quickly and quietly rushed to the kitchen to retrieve the baby monitor and then returned to Amy's room to place it on her nightstand. He quietly closed her door and made his way back downstairs.

He bid Anne and George goodnight and drove home, deep in thought as multiple questions raced through his mind in rapid succession. _I thought women were __**supposed**__ to breastfeed their babies. But if that's true then why does it hurt Amy so much? Is it because she's such a young mother? Is leaking milk normal and what's the difference between a normal bra and a nursing one? How tired do you have to be to fall asleep in the shower? Is there any long-term damage from mild hypothermia? And speaking of long-term how long is she gonna be…sore? And what about that baby weight she mentioned? When does it go away, or does it? _He somehow managed to arrive back home, although he had no idea how he'd managed to do it without getting into an accident. He greeted his parents and got ready for bed. He had to momentarily push thoughts of Amy to the back of his mind to finish his homework but once he finished his mind had nothing else to focus on **but** Amy. His phone rang and he immediately grabbed it, thinking it might be Amy calling. Seeing a number but no name he ignored the call and turned his phone to silent. He knew he wouldn't be able to sleep until he found answers to his question so he turned on his laptop and started searching online. He found some answers and started to feel guilty all over again, but then he found something that made his blood run cold.


	12. Unpleasant Discovery

Ricky was staring at the links on the screen but his brain was having a hard time registering what he was seeing. He started opening links in different tabs and reading article after article, his stomach twisting into more and more knots. As he read each article and testimonial his mind furiously reviewed Amy's change in attitude over the past week to see if her behavior matched anything that he was reading. After about an hour he couldn't take it anymore and shut the lid of his laptop, resting his head in his hands, one phrase repeating in his mind like a mantra: _postpartum depression_.

_She's not sleeping well but that's normal and lack of sleep's making her cranky. She's __**definitely**__ more emotional seeing as she burst into tears when I gave her a hug but that's supposedly just the 'baby blues.' But how am I supposed to keep her from becoming depressed and possibly hurting John? Why don't they cover any of this stuff in Sex Ed! I mean, they just stop at 'sex ends in a baby that the mother has to give birth to'. They don't even bother with what happens to the mother __**after**__ the kid gets here. Okay, true, they shouldn't have to cover any of this in High School 'cuz they secretly hope we'll all wait 'til we're in college to have sex and __**then**__ have to worry about this but I swear if I'd known any of this before I ever had sex I never woulda slept with Amy without a condom. I wouldn't be sleeping around at all for that matter. Yeah I know you can get STDs and whatnot if you're not careful but a baby? And everything that comes with it for the mother? And let's not forget the guilt the father feels, well the fathers that care about their kid and their kid's mom anyway. What am I supposed to do to help her!?_ He buried his face in his pillow and screamed out his frustration. Margaret was coming to say goodnight and quickly rushed in when she heard Ricky's muffled scream.

"Ricky! Ricky, are you alright?" she asked as she quickly came down the short flight of stairs into his bedroom. Ricky lifted his face from his pillow and looked at his foster mother, tears and worry in his eyes. He sat up and she lowered herself to his bed, concern written all over her face. Ricky silently leaned over to retrieve his laptop. He lifted the lid and turned the screen to face his mother. Margaret noticed an article about postpartum depression and saw that Ricky had multiple tabs open about the same topic. She looked back at Ricky, her concern still present. "So you think Amy's depressed?" Ricky shook his head and placed his laptop on his nightstand with a sigh.

"She's been a little moody and snappy lately so tonight I asked her what was wrong. She gave me a long explanation of all the problems she's been having this past week adjusting to life as a teen mom and I wanted to look up some of the issues she mentioned. Somehow I stumbled onto the depression thing and now I don't know what to do," he explained sadly, resting his head back against his headboard. Margaret gave him a comforting smile and patted his leg.

"Son, being a new mother, regardless of the mother's age at the time, takes some getting used to and some crankiness is normal. There's no reason to assume right away that Amy's experiencing postpartum depression just yet."

"I know!" Ricky told her with exasperation. "According to a lot of those articles and sites she's probably just going through the 'baby blues' or whatever but she could get depressed a couple months from now and **then** what am I supposed to do? How do I keep her from getting depressed, or worse, hurting our son!?" he was practically shouting at his mother but Margaret knew Ricky well enough to know he was just trying to mask his fear about the situation.

"Ricky, all you can do is keep an eye on her behavior and keep talking to her to find out how she's feeling. Only then will you be able to figure out if Amy's transitioned from the baby blues into postpartum depression. There's no sense worrying yourself sick over something that hasn't happened, and may not happen at all." Margaret's words made sense to Ricky and he was able to calm himself down. He took a couple of deep breaths to slow his heart rate back to normal and then smiled at his mother.

"Thanks, mom." He sighed before speaking again. "I just….never knew about everything that comes with having a baby, for the girl I mean. I knew it wasn't gonna be easy for us to raise our son together and I know there's a lot of drama going on with her family right now, but I never knew about the day-to-day stuff a mom deals with. And I certainly didn't know what childbirth was really all about and I just feel so…so…..clueless and unprepared for all this, like Sex Ed let me down or something. Does that make any sense?" Margaret chuckled.

"Ricky, the point of Sex Ed isn't to prepare students for parenthood. It's simply meant to help you understand how the male and female reproductive systems work, explain how children are conceived, and educate you on both the dangers and responsibilities that come with becoming sexually active. Parenthood is an adventure best left to adults, which is why all that day-to-day stuff isn't covered," she explained with a wink. Ricky rolled his eyes.

"I know. But it doesn't mean I wish this stuff was covered in school at some point." Fear crept into his eyes as he looked at his mother. "A lot of this stuff has freaked me out and made me feel so guilty for putting Amy through it all." He closed his eyes and sighed again, lowering and slowly shaking his head. "I never meant to hurt her, mom. If I'd known what I was about to put her through I never woulda slept with her, especially since I never intended to in the first place."

"So why did you?" Ricky was silent for several moments, thinking about it, and Margaret patiently waited for an answer.

"Because she didn't stop me," he admitted.

"So you thought she wanted to have sex with you simply because she didn't say anything at the time?" He slowly shook his head. Margaret cocked her head slightly to one side. "Are you saying you knew she **didn't** want to have sex with you?" Again Ricky shook his head. "I don't understand, son." Ricky raised his head to look at his mother and explain.

"I really liked her, mom, and we were just gonna make out. When we started doing more than that I figured if she didn't stop me then she must be on the pill or something. I didn't realize Amy didn't realize what we were getting into until it was too late, but still she didn't say anything." Margaret nodded in understanding. "And now she's angry at herself for not saying anything back then and it's not like I can take it all back so she stops being angry with herself." He ran a hand through his hair. "I just wanna take care of her and our son but with all this stuff I don't know about how am I supposed to do that?" His voice was pleading and Margaret leaned forward to wrap Ricky in a hug.

"Ricky, the best way to know what Amy needs you to do to help her is to ask her. Tell her that you've been doing some research to try and understand what she's going through and then let her know that you're willing to be there for her in any way that she needs you to be. I know it's probably not the answer you wanna hear, but in reality it's the only answer I can give you." Ricky hugged his mother back and sighed with resignation.

"Okay." Margaret released him and kissed his forehead before rising from his bed. "Thanks, mom."

"Anytime, sweetheart." She sent him one last smile, which he returned, before heading upstairs to bed. Ricky turned off his lamp to go to sleep. Sleep eluded him for a while but eventually he drifted off to a dreamless sleep. Ricky woke up and got ready for school with a new resolve. _I'm gonna be at her house every spare minute I have. I won't give Amy a __**chance**__ to feel too overwhelmed and stressed out._ He went upstairs to have some breakfast with a little pep in his step. His father was sitting at the kitchen table when he walked in the kitchen.

"Morning, son. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah." His mother placed a plate of food in front of him while he poured himself a glass of orange juice.

"You're in a good mood this morning," his father noted with a smile. "Any particular reason?"

"Amy's been a little stressed out this week and I've decided to help with that by spending all my free time with her and John from now on, when I don't have any homework to do or sessions with Dr. Fields." His parents shared a knowing glance.

"Still trying to figure out how to keep Amy from slipping into postpartum depression?" his mother asked him. Ricky nervously glanced from her to his father.

"It's alright, Ricky. Your mother filled me in last night that you were worried about Amy becoming depressed simply because she's already stressed out at the moment." Ricky relaxed. "Even though that's the reason behind your decision, I'm sure Amy will appreciate having an extra pair of hands around." His father finished his breakfast and rose to place his dishes in the sink. He kissed his wife and then headed off to work. Ricky and Margaret quietly finished their own breakfast before likewise heading their separate ways to start their day.

Ricky arrived at school at the same time as Ben's driver. The two boys walked up the sidewalk towards the main entrance from opposite ends, stopping just in front of the doors eyeing each other cautiously, when they noticed each other. Several students who were participating in Joe's betting pools were in the courtyard and watched the two eagerly, hoping to overhear something that would lead them to believe their 'team' was winning.


	13. Possible Complications

"So…." Ben said a little nervously.

"So," Ricky responded, his voice aloof.

"Have you heard?"

"Heard what?"

"That Joe's taking bets on our relationships with Amy."

"Yeah. And?"

"I'm just curious. Are you gonna try to date Amy now that she and I've broken up?" Ricky rolled his eyes and adjusted the strap of his backpack over his shoulder.

"Ben, my relationship with the mother of my son is none of your business." He turned to walk into the school, Ben quickly following him.

"So you're **not** gonna try to get close to her just because of the bets?" Ricky glared at Ben and stopped walking so he could turn to face him.

"You really need to become a better listener. I'm **already** close to Amy **because** she's the mother of my son and for some reason you just can't seem to wrap your head around that and I can't explain it to you so I'll tell you what. Someday you'll get married and have a baby and after you've been in the delivery room while your wife has your baby **then** come talk to me about my relationship with Amy." Ricky rolled his eyes and walked off, leaving Ben alone with his thoughts.

Ricky and Ben's little conversation added fuel to the fire surrounding Joe's betting pools. Any students who hadn't heard about the bets yet were now eager to place bets. Those who had chosen Team Ricky were positive Amy would choose him and those who'd chosen Team Ben were now plotting ways to convince Amy to choose Ben instead. The hallways were practically buzzing with gossip between periods.

"So how long'd you guess it would take her to choose Ricky?" a girl asked her friend as they walked into the bathroom.

"I gave her three months," her friend replied, setting down her purse and digging out her lip gloss.

"Only three months?"

"I figured Amy would need some time to recover from having a baby and then, seeing as it's Ricky the charmer, he'd get her to go out with him again shortly after, even if she's not ready to jump in bed with him again just yet." The girl finished applying her lip gloss and put it back in her purse. "What about you? How long'd you give her?"

"I bet six months. I figured even if it is Ricky he'd still have to work at it to get her to pick him as her boyfriend since now she's got a kid to remind her he knocked her up." The girl finished fixing her hair. "But after his little convo with Ben this morning I'm kinda wishing I'd bet on a shorter amount of time." Her friend giggled as they made their way out of the bathroom. What they didn't know was that Adrian was in one of the bathroom stalls. She opened the stall door just as the bathroom door swung closed. _People are betting how long it'll take Ricky to hook up with Amy again!? When did this happen? _Adrian knew if she wanted answers about something shady going on at school there was only one person she could turn to: Joe. Adrian quickly went in search of Joe and found him, but she didn't get a chance to talk to him because the warning bell sounded and she had to hurry to her next class. _Guess I'll have to wait 'til lunch._ When lunchtime finally rolled around Adrian cornered Joe at his locker. He was surprised to see her, but only slightly.

"And how may I be of service today," he asked her with a bemused smile.

"Someone's taking bets on how long it'll take Amy to decide to go out with Ricky and I wanna know who's behind it and what the bets are," Adrian informed him, irritation and curiosity evident in her voice.

"And just what do you plan to do with said information?" Adrian raised an eyebrow as she processed his question.

"So you're behind this twisted little game. And just what do you get out of it?"

"Amusement. Not to mention a percentage of all bets," he informed her calmly, not the least bit ashamed of himself.

"And what exactly are the stakes?" Joe shrugged.

"Simple, money. You pick Team Ben or Ricky and then you have the option of betting on how long it'll take Amy to pick the guy you're backing. If she picks your guy everyone on your team gets a cut of the first pot. Whoever guesses the right length of time gets a cut of the second." Adrian processed this information for a moment and then her mind hatched a plan. She gave Joe a mischievous smile.

"I want in."

"Okay. It's twenty bucks to pick a guy and twenty to guess how long." Adrian opened her purse and dug out her wallet.

"I'll pick Team Ben and I'm gonna guess three and a half months," she informed Joe as she handed him the money. Just before he took the bills out of her hand she snatched them away, shaking her head.

"Oh no. I want something in writing that says I've placed this bet. I don't want you trying to weasel me out of any money when I win." Joe smirked and turned around to his locker and removed a notebook. He flipped it open to a table containing names, dates and dollar amounts and scribbled down Adrian's bets. He then turned to a blank sheet of paper and re-wrote the same information he'd just entered into his table. He signed the page, tore it out, and handed it to Adrian. She handed over the money and smiled.

"Pleasure doing business with you."

"Same here." She walked off to eat her lunch, smiling at her scheme. _Now all I gotta do is keep Ricky so distracted that Amy chooses Ben, and I've got three and a half months to do it in, not that it'll take that long._ Meanwhile Ricky had just arrived at Amy's. He let himself in the kitchen door and heard silence. Assuming she and John were sleeping, Ricky tiptoed upstairs to check on them. As he neared the top of the stairs he heard the shower running and saw that the door was ajar. _That's odd._ He made his way to John's nursery and peeked inside; John was sound asleep. He quietly closed the door and made his way to the bathroom to check on Amy. Since the door was ajar he didn't bother knocking and the sight in front of him made him blush and then panic.


	14. Intimacy Issues

Ricky was frozen in place, not sure what to do. He didn't know what the protocol for this type of situation was because he'd never been in this situation before. He was standing in the doorway of the upstairs bathroom and he could clearly see that Amy was in the shower, even though the glass was frosted enough that he could only make out the shape of her body and the fact she was naked. On the floor were her clothes with what looked like spit up on them, probably the reason for the mid-day shower. But her head was down and she wasn't moving. He cleared his throat and still Amy stood there immobile. Remembering that Amy had fallen asleep in the shower before, Ricky quietly but quickly sprang into action. He slid the door panel closest to the shower head open just enough to reach in and turn it off, noticing that the water was slightly cold. He slid the door closed and looked around for towels. Finding a bath towel sitting on the counter, he quickly unfolded it and held it out in front of him. He managed to maneuver the shower door closest to Amy open without looking at her. After all, she was gonna be upset and embarrassed enough without finding out he'd seen her naked while she was asleep. He wrapped the towel around her body, keeping his eyes focused on the shower tile. He managed to get her fully wrapped before the movement jarred her awake. She locked eyes with Ricky and let out a short scream, not sure what was going on.

"I didn't see anything, I swear!" he told her. Amy quickly pulled her arms out of the towel and hugged it to her body tightly.

"What are you doing here!?" she asked, slightly panicky.

"It's lunchtime. I came over to check on you guys and I found you asleep in here." He could see Amy calming down as she processed his words. "I remembered you said you woke up in the shower with mild hypothermia last week so I figured I needed to get you out of here before that happened." Amy gave him a confused look.

"Why didn't you just wake me up?"

"I thought about it but I was afraid that if I startled you from the doorway you might slip in the shower and hurt yourself. I kinda hoped you'd wake up once you felt a towel being wrapped around you though." Amy nodded in understanding and then locked eyes with Ricky, blushing.

"What?" She looked at him incredulously.

"Um. I'm standing here in a towel. Do you mind?" Ricky blushed and quickly backed out of the bathroom, closing the door behind him as he mumbled out an apology. Amy quickly dried herself and put on her clean clothes. She rinsed her soiled clothes in the tub, wrung them out, and then placed them in the hamper. She opened the door to find Ricky leaning against the wall. She silently made her way to her bedroom and Ricky followed her, both sitting down on her bed.

"So what happened? I saw your clothes on the floor. Are you sick? Is John sick?" Amy shook her head and reached for her comb to begin combing out her hair.

"I forgot to put a spit up cloth over my shoulder after his last feeding and so he ended up spitting up down the back of my shirt but some of it went down my back too. I got him down for a nap and then went to shower." Amy silently brushed her hair for several moments and Ricky just watched her, not sure what to say. Amy glanced at him and noticed he had something on his mind. "What?"

"Huh?" Ricky was snapped out of his thoughts by the sound of Amy's voice.

"Something's bothering you. What is it?"

"Um." He looked down at her carpet, not sure how to tell her what was on his mind. Amy sighed with irritation.

"Just spit it out Underwood."

"Well, after you told me everything that was going on with you, you know, adjusting to being a new mom and all, I looked up all of things you mentioned online to try and figure out how to help make things easier for you." He paused and looked down at the carpet again.

"Okay…." Amy pressed. Ricky took a deep breath and started speaking quickly.

"And I found something I'd never heard of before and I promised myself I'd be over here every spare minute I have so you're not so stressed out and tired but apparently I haven't been doing all that much to help you since you fell asleep in the shower again." He took another deep breath and raised his eyes to look at Amy. She looked back at him with a mixture of surprise and confusion. They were silent for several moments before Amy spoke.

"What did you find?" Ricky sighed.

"It's something called postpartum depression and..." Amy cut him off.

"I know what it is." It was Ricky's turn to be surprised.

"You do?" Amy nodded and placed her comb on her nightstand to pick up her brush and began brushing her hair as she spoke.

"The nurses and my OB covered it before I left the hospital." She could see the nervousness in his eyes and started putting the pieces of the puzzle together. "Is that why you've been practically hovering over me and following me around when you come over? You're afraid I'll become depressed or something?" He nodded.

"Doctors don't know what triggers it exactly and it can show up right after your baby's born or months later. I figure the less stressed out and tired you are the less chance there is of you getting depressed?" Amy couldn't help but giggle at his earnestness. His brows knit together in confusion and she continued to giggle. She got up and placed a kiss on his cheek, only furthering his confusion.

"That's very admirable and paranoid of you."

"Huh?"

"Ricky, it's admirable that you were willing to take some time and try to understand what I'm going through as a new mom and it's kinda funny that what you found out made you so paranoid that now you don't wanna let me out of your sight when you come over. I'm fine, Ricky. I'm just going through what all new mom's go through." Ricky visibly relaxed at her words.

"You sure?" She nodded and smiled at him.

"Positive. I do wanna ask you a question though, and I'd appreciate an honest answer." He nodded

"What?"

"Did you look while you were wrapping me in the towel?"

"No," he said with a chuckle. "I knew you'd be upset with me or feel embarrassed when you woke up and found me wrapping you up so no, I didn't look."

"Okay then." They chatted for several more minutes before Ricky headed back to school. When he did he found Adrian waiting for him at his locker. He rolled his eyes and did his best to calm his rising irritation.

"What do you want, Adrian?"

"Just wondering how things are going. I've been calling and texting you and you didn't call me back all last week," she informed him, purposefully invading his personal space in a suggestive manner. He took a step back.

"Because I'm no longer interested in sleeping with you," he stated as he opened his locker to retrieve the books he'd need for the remainder of his classes. Adrian wasn't giving up so easily.

"Oh come on. I know you and you can't go very long without sleeping with someone. It might as well be me," she practically purred in his ear. Ricky wasn't having it. He slammed his locker shut and turned to face her, his face hard and emotionless.

"Adrian, I'm only gonna tell you this once so listen up. I'm done sleeping around, period. Sex isn't a game or a hobby or just something to do. In case you weren't aware, sex leads to babies and since I'm not interested in having a baby with you I'm not gonna sleep with you anymore." He started to walk away but Adrian grabbed his arm to stop him and chuckled.

"Stop being so dramatic. Birth control and condoms keep you from having a baby." She crossed her arms and gave Ricky a knowing look. "When you use them that is. So how long do you think you can keep playing this little game? You honestly think if you pretend to be a loving father long enough Amy's gonna sleep with you again?" Ricky shook his arm out of her grasp.

"One, I'm not playing. Two, I'm not interested in sleeping with **anyone** anytime soon. And three, calling me is just a waste of your time because I blocked your number a week ago. So if you're just looking for a bed buddy find someone else, Adrian." He walked off, leaving her staring angry daggers at his back.


	15. Busy Bodies

The week had passed by relatively uneventfully. Adrian continued to try to corner and seduce Ricky and he continued to shake her off, instead spending all his free time at Amy's helping take care of John. Finally Monday rolled around and it was time for the moment of truth, so to speak, as Amy returned to school. Thanks to Ricky picking up and dropping off her assignments, Amy only had a couple of quizzes and tests to take in order to be all caught up with her schoolwork and she had arranged to take them that morning before school. She walked out of her biology classroom after taking her final test with ten minutes to spare before the first bell rang. She made her way to her locker and stopped when she noticed Ben waiting for her. She took a deep breath and continued walking to her locker.

"Hi, Amy."

"Ben." She opened her locker and began taking out the books she would need for the first half of the day. She placed them in her bag and then turned to face him, closing her locker door. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to see how you and John are doing. And to see if you're willing to reconsider our relationship. I can assure you I've done a lot of thinking over the past two weeks and I can also assure you I intended to try and win you back before Joe started taking bets about us."

"Ben, I know all about the bets and I know you wanted us to get back together before they started. To answer your questions: John and I are fine and no, I'm not interested in getting back together with you. I have a son to take care of so I don't have time for unnecessary complications, like a jealous boyfriend." She walked away, heading to the band room, leaving a crestfallen Ben in her wake. Adrian came around the corner with an aloof expression on her face and her arms crossed.

"Don't give up so easily." Ben turned around to face her.

"What do you mean?"

"Bets or no bets she's gonna need, and want, help taking care of John and Ricky's gonna get bored of playing daddy eventually. And when he does I'm sure Amy will be **happy** to take you back, if you're still willing to step up in Ricky's place that is." She uncrossed her arms and started walking away. "It's just a matter of time," she tossed over her shoulder before heading up the stairs to her first class of the day.

"Yeah. It's only a matter of time. She just needs more time," Ben assured himself. Alice and Henry walked up to him just as he was finishing giving himself this pep talk. Alice shook her head in exasperation at him.

"Ben, you've gotta move on. Now that the baby's here things are different, and it's not because of her hormone being outta whack. She may choose Ricky she may not but either way she's not gonna get back together with you anytime soon. **Especially** if you're still hung up on the fact Ricky's still a part of her life." She arched her eyebrows to let Ben know she wasn't suggesting he still had this hang up but was simply reminding him he needed to deal with it. Henry gave Alice a disapproving look.

"He can still be interested in Amy if he wants to be; it's a free country." Henry turned towards Ben. "So did you talk to her yet? She came back to school today right?" Ben nodded glumly.

"Yeah, and she said she's not interested in getting back together yet. But I'm sure she just needs some more time to adjust and think about it?" Henry nodded his head hopefully while Alice just looked between the two of them as the first bell rang.

"You two are idiots," she informed them before heading to class. Henry and Ben looked at each other, shrugged, and headed to their own classes, unaware that several students had waited behind their lockers when they noticed Ben talking to Amy and had eavesdropped on all three of his little conversations. During first period Ricky kept glancing at Amy and his fellow band mates during band class. He was worried Amy would notice people staring at her and he was nervous that if she became upset by it, it might trigger postpartum depression. Intellectually he knew that there was no way to predict what might trigger it for Amy, or if she'd ever experience it, but he was still determined to do everything in his power to make sure it never happened for her. Amy had mentally prepared herself for the looks and whispers over the past two weeks, from the moment Lauren called her to tell her about Joe's bets. While she was still a little angry that Joe was attempting to profit from her life's unforeseen circumstances, she wasn't sure if she wanted to approach him about it. Eventually the bell signaling the end of first period sounded, much sooner than Ricky would've liked. Amy caught Ricky looking at her nervously and she knitted her brow, silently asking him what was wrong; she waited for him in the instrument storage area for an answer. He silently helped her put up her French horn and then they walked out into the hall together.

"What?" she asked him.

"You okay?" he asked her nervously. She nodded and waited for him to elaborate. "Just wanted to see how you're doing. Considering." He didn't explain but Amy understood what he was saying and gave him a small smile.

"Unfortunately I'm used to people gossiping about me. I'm fine, Ricky." She could see him visibly relax and then he gave her a small smile of his own. They went their separate ways but a couple of students overheard their exchange and could hear the concern in Ricky's voice; they headed to class whispering earnestly. It wasn't until lunch that things heated up. A teacher had gone into the ladies room shortly after the lunch bell rang to relieve herself. Several moments later a few girls came in to touch up their makeup and several more girls came in after them to do the same as well as to relieve themselves.

"Yeah, Heather overheard them this morning. Amy's **definitely** not interested in getting back together with Ben. She shut him down and blew him off quick."

"Well what'd he expect? If he's trying to compete with the father of her baby he knew he was fighting an uphill battle," she informed her friend, touching up her eyeliner. Another friend giggled to her right.

"He should've just given up when he found out Amy's baby daddy was Ricky. The guy's bad news but he's got charm coming out the wazzo," she stated, brushing out her hair. A girl two sinks to her right swiveled to face her with her hands on her hips.

"Oh please, he's still got a shot. Ricky can't be trusted and he gets bored with girls easily. It's only a matter of time before he gets tired of seeing Amy and when that happens Ben's a shoo-in," she stated smugly, turning back to the mirror to reapply some mascara. Her two friends to her right nodded in agreement, scowling at the other three girls. One of them fired back.

"Oh please, Naomi. You only bet on Ben 'cuz you're tryna sleep with Ricky again and you're soooo sure you can charm said charmer that you put your bet on Ben."

"Well at least I didn't pick the guy we all know is just gonna hurt Amy again," Naomi shot back. "I barely know the girl but I know she's too sweet and naïve to deserve to be hurt by Ricky again. And let's face it." She stopped to look at all the other girls standing at the sinks. "We all know she's not his type; she was just a quick fling. It's got nothing to do with sleeping with that jerk again. I'm just an optimist." The three girls on Team Ricky snorted at her, causing her to arch an eyebrow. "I mean it. Ben's a nice guy, she's a nice girl and considering what Ricky's already done to her she deserves a nice guy. What's **your** excuse for betting on Ricky 'Saint Sarah'?" The girl who accused Naomi of trying to sleep with Ricky again tilted her head up in defiance but answered anyway.

"If you're gonna bet on whether Ben or Ricky can get Amy to go out with them again then it's only **practical** to bet on Ricky. Like Jasmine said, Ricky's got the charm to pull it off." A girl walked out of one of the stalls and snorted.

"Oh please. Half the girls who bet on Ricky only did it 'cuz they've already slept with him and know he likes a challenge. The other half only bet on Ben in hopes of spiting Ricky for not calling them back or dating them after he slept with them," she informed the room while keeping her eyes on her hands as she washed them.

"You want everyone to believe you're such a goodie goodie but who did **you** bet on Teresa?" a girl on Team Ben asked her with a sneer. Teresa looked up at her smugly, shaking off her hands and walking towards the paper towel dispenser.

"Neither, Elizabeth," Teresa shot back. "Ricky flirted with me a while back and just when I was considering going out with him I caught his making out with another girl. I knew then he was bad news and couldn't be trusted; unfortunately Amy learned that the hard way. I think it's awful that Joe and the rest of you are tryna make some money off her situation so I'm staying clear of it." She finished drying her hands and tossed the used towels in the trashcan. "Personally I hope she doesn't pick either of them in the timeframes you've all bet on and everybody loses both betting pools," she added with a smile before heading out of the restroom. The girls all huffed or groaned in irritation at Teresa, some now feeling guilty for placing bets at all, some wishing they'd never slept with Ricky in the first place, and some simply feeling annoyed at someone for being a better person than they were. The girls finished their primping in silence and left the bathroom. Once the teacher was sure the coast was clear, she exited her stall, appalled to find out what was going on. She quickly washed and dried her hands and made her way to the staff lounge in search of the principal. She scanned the room and zeroed in on her target.

"I need to talk to you," she stated, her eyes indicating that she had some troubling news to discuss. Seeing her expression the principal rose.

"We'll talk in my office." They two silently walked to the principal's office and the door was shut behind them. "So what's going on Jody?" the principal asked, taking a seat. Jody sighed.

"Brace yourself for this one," she said sullenly before telling the principal everything she'd overheard in the women's room moments ago. The principal was silent for several moments, a look of shock and disbelief on her face.

"Students are actually placing bets on Amy Juergens's love life?" Jody nodded and the principal hung her head. "If it's not one thing it's another with these kids today." The principal took a deep breath and the wheels in her head began turning. "Thank you for informing me of this, Jody. I'll handle things for the moment." Jody nodded and then rose from her chair to leave, shutting the door behind her on her way out. The principal finished eating her lunch in her office and sullenly waited for the bell to sound, signaling the end of lunch. The principal listened to the sound of students' voices as they walked through the halls and talked with their friends. _What kind of people try to profit from another's misfortune or poor decisions!? What's wrong with the youth today!?_ She checked her emails as she waited for the second bell to sound, signaling the start of the next period. She waited two minutes and then picked up her walkie talkie and spoke into it. "Donald, it's Annie. I need you to come to my office please." Donald answered right away.

"On my way. I'll be there in about five minutes." Exactly four and three-quarters minutes later Donald knocked on the office door.

"Come in." Donald did so and Annie motioned for Donald to shut the door. "We have a situation that will require us to inspect a student's backpack and locker because said student is believed to be involved in an illegal gambling operation on school grounds." Donald nodded in understanding as Annie pressed the intercom button to signal her secretary. "Jean, please call Joe Hampton to my office, and inform his teacher he will need to bring his backpack and personal items with him."

"Will do," Jean informed her. She looked at Donald.

"Please wait by Joe's locker, just in case he attempts to 'stop by' on his way to my office." Donald smiled knowingly and went to do as directed. Joe arrived at the principal's office ten minutes later. Jean let Annie know Joe had arrived and Annie exited her office, carrying an empty cardboard box. "Mr. Hampton, please follow me." She and Joe made their way to his locker and stopped, Joe becoming slightly nervous as he tried to figure out what was going on. "Please open your locker, Mr. Hampton, and then stand to the side." Joe did as directed and Annie handed the box to Donald, who quickly began removing all items from Joe's locker and placing it in the box. Once he was finished he closed Joe's locker. "Please follow me," she informed Joe and headed towards the conference room, Joe and Donald right behind her. Once they were inside and the door was closed, Annie nodded to Donald, who put on inspection gloves and began placing each item on the table for inspection. Joe's eyes widened a little as he realized what they might be looking for but quickly calmed down when he remembered that the incriminating item wasn't in his locker at the moment. Donald meticulously searched through the items and after several minutes looked at Annie and shook his head. She turned to Joe.

"Mr. Hampton, please empty the contents of your backpack on the table," she instructed calmly. Even though Joe put on his poker face, inside he was panicking.


	16. Judgment Day

Joe knew the jig was up as he emptied his book bag and just his luck the first notebook Donald picked up and searched was the one he was keeping track of the bets in. Donald quickly skimmed the charts before looking at Annie and nodding. She stuck her hand out for the notebook and Donald handed it to her.

"Please return Mr. Hampton's items to the box and then escort him and his items to my office," Annie said while rising from her chair. "And confiscate his phone as well." She made her way to her office to phone Joe's parents while he was forced to stew as he watched the security guard box up his stuff. They made their way to the office where Donald motioned for Joe to have a seat while he went and knocked on Annie's door. She hung up the phone and called for Donald to enter. He placed the box on her desk and looked at her for further instructions. "His mother is on her way. Once she arrives we'll explain the situation to her." Annie sighed and leaned back in her chair as Donald took a seat to wait. Annie began reading through Joe's bet logs and her face became more and more disgusted as she read. Finally she closed the notebook with a groan.

"That bad?" Donald asked. Annie simply nodded her head.

"An organized betting operation is illegal and, according to the student handbook, any student involved in illegal activity on school grounds is automatically suspended for two months." Donald nodded, waiting for Annie to continue. "There's at least eighty names in these charts!" Donald looked at her in disbelief. "There's gonna be a lot of angry parents and I just know most, if not all of them, are going to blame poor Amy Juergens."

"Why would they blame her?"

"Because if we didn't allow her to continue attending here once we found out she was pregnant then none of this would've happened," she informed him in a monotone. Donald scoffed.

"It's not her fault we have some, well, a **lot,** of sick, twisted students here. And she had every right to continue attending school here if she wanted to. In fact I commend her for being brave enough to return to a school that did nothing but gossip about her once news of her pregnancy got out."

"I know that, Donald, but based on the fact so many of our students lack a moral compass, and given the fact I've been an education administrator long enough to know that these days parents are more likely to blame anybody else but themselves for their child's behavior, I'm just preparing myself to have to defend that poor girl." Annie sighed. "Hasn't she been through enough? Isn't she **going** through enough? We both have kids and you remember what it was like those first few months. I can't imagine going through those months while still being in High School and not in a committed relationship with my child's father." Donald sighed and nodded in agreement. _It's just one more thing that girl should be commended for._ The intercom buzzed and Annie answered it. "Yes?"

"Mrs. Hampton is here."

"Send her in please." Joe's mother walked in, confusion evident on her face. Annie motioned to a vacant seat in front of her. "Please have a seat, Mrs. Hampton." Annie waited until the woman was seated before beginning her explanation. "I received a report of a betting operation taking place on campus and that your son was involved with it. As outlined in the student handbook, suspecting your son's involvement gave us reason to search his locker and backpack and we found this." She slid Joe's notebook to her and Mrs. Hampton began skimming it, her eyes widening in shock as she read. She looked up at the principal for an explanation and Annie obliged her, sliding the notebook back in front of her. "Apparently your son had been taking bets on which young man, Ben or Ricky, a student here named Amy would pick to go out with again and how long it would take her to make her decision."

"But why would my son be taking bets on another student's love life?"

"I think that's an answer we'd all like to hear." Annie gave Donald a look and he quickly rose to ask Joe to step into the office. He walked in and sat in the only vacant seat and slouched. His mother spoke first.

"Joe, why were you taking bets on another student's love life?" Joe cleared his throat.

"Well, it seemed like an amusing, and potentially profitable, thing to do," he quietly admitted. Annie and Donald wondered why Joe, the student with the reputation for shady activities, suddenly seemed so ashamed of himself. They got their answer moments later as Joe's mother's confusion turned to anger.

"Joseph Alexander Hampton! Are you telling me you find it amusing to make sport of other people's lives!? I know I raised you better than that!?" Joe quickly tried to defend himself.

"I know, mom, it's just that I have this knack for seeing financial opportunities in any situation and it's not like anyone was gonna get hurt," he pleaded, practically begging for forgiveness. His mother shot out of her chair and placed her hands on her hips.

"Oh really!? And what about the people you were taking bets about? Even if they weren't physically hurt did it ever occur to you that they might get their feelings hurt once they found out their schoolmates were trying to manipulate them for a laugh!? And since the bet was about their love lives did it ever occur to you that the person who doesn't get chosen might get their heart broken? Or that the person who **is** chosen might question the relationship once they found out it was possibly manipulated into being because of the bet!? Well!? Did you!?" Joe slouched lower in his seat and shook his head, having no answer to give his mother. "And why these three?" Her eyes told Joe that she would accept nothing less than the truth and she would know if he was lying. Joe cleared his throat and licked his suddenly dry lips. He decided the faster he explained the sooner she'd stop giving him a death glare.

"Well Amy met Ricky at band camp before school started and they slept together and she got pregnant. But then she met Ben and started dating him before news of her pregnancy got out around school. He stuck by her through her pregnancy but they recently broke up. Ben wants to win her back and Ricky, who's also the school's playboy, broke up with his sorta girlfriend to take care of Amy and their kid and I just wondered which guy she'd take back and how long it would take and quite a few students were willing to place bets on it." His mother was now furious and her eyes told Joe so.

"A teenage girl gets pregnant, has her child and somehow manages to stay in school and you treat her life as a source of amusement!? Who's child **are** you!?" Joe cringed at her obvious disappoint in him. She turned towards the principal. "What's the severest punishment you can give him for this? He obviously needs to learn how to respect fellow human beings, and women in particular."

"Well, according to the student handbook participation in illegal activity carries an automatic two months suspension in addition to whatever laws the illegal activity violated. As things stand right now your son is facing a possibly of incarceration or a hefty fine, but that will be up to a court to decide," Annie informed her. Mrs. Hampton nodded in understanding and then turned her eyes back to her son.

"So I've got two months to punish him myself before the court gets ahold of him?"

"Yes, ma'am. As of right now your son is suspended for two months." Annie slid the box of Joe's things to his mother and then held out this phone. "These items were in your son's locker and backpack," she said as she motioned towards the box. "And I had our security guard Donald confiscate your son's phone so he would be unable to contact any of his betters about what it about to happen." Mrs. Hampton accepted the phone and placed it in the box before picking it up.

"Oh don't worry. I'll be keeping his phone and laptop until **after** his court date. I don't know how any other parents are gonna react but **my** son's gonna be held accountable for his actions and I'm not gonna let him ruin the surprise for any others. Let's go Joseph!" Joe quickly followed his mother out of the principal's office and to the parking lot. Annie sighed and looked at Donald.

"I've got a lot of students to pull out of class and phone calls to make." Donald nodded and left the office as Annie flipped to the first page of Joe's bet table, opened a Word document, and began typing the name of every student she needed pulled out of class. The bells signaling the end of one period and the start of another had both sounded by the time Annie finished compiling a list of students to have pulled out of class. She picked up her walkie talkie as she waited for three copies of the list to print. "Donald, it's Annie. Are you available?"

"Yes. Where do you need me?"

"I need you to meet me in the auditorium and this may take a while."

"On my way." She picked up her three printouts and walked out of her office. She handed one list to Jean. "Jean, please call the parents or guardians of these students and ask them to come to the office. Once they arrive please direct them to the auditorium." Jean glanced at the sheet and then looked back at Annie, her eyes wide with disbelief. Annie simply nodded and headed out of the office. She walked to Mr. Molina's office and knocked on the door, causing him to look up. "I need you to pull these students out of class. Please inform their teachers they need to bring their book bags with them and once they arrive please send them to the auditorium," she informed him while holding out the list of students' names. He did a double take before looking back up at Annie.

"What's going on?"

"I'll explain later. Cross off each student's name as they come to your office and once the last student has been sent to the auditorium please join us there. I'll explain the situation to you the same time I explain it to everyone else because you're going to be heavily involved once this is all out in the open." Annie spun on her heel and headed to the auditorium to wait, the third copy of the list and Joe's notebook in her hand. Annie arrived and nodded to Donald before setting up the projector. She knew parents would be screaming for proof and she intended to show them Joe's notebook. "We'll need three chairs on stage: one for me, one for you, and one for Molina." Donald nodded and situated the chairs just as a student came into the auditorium, looking confused.

"What's going on Principal Witherly?" Annie turned to her printed list.

"Name?"

"Uh, Naomi Rutgers." Annie placed a checkmark by the girl's name.

"I'll explain in a little while. Please have a seat Ms. Rutgers, and turn your cell phone off." The three of them took their seats and waited. As each student walked into the auditorium Annie asked for their name, placed a checkmark by it and then gave them the same spiel she'd given Naomi. As parents and guardians began to arrive Annie introduced herself and asked them for the name of their student, placing a second checkmark by each student's name to show that their parent or guardian had also arrived. It took half an hour for all students and parents to arrive. Mr. Molina walked in and Annie motioned to him to take a seat as she stepped up to the small podium. She took a deep breath to calm her irritation with her students.

"I know you're all wondering why you've been called to the auditorium today and since the matter is serious I'll get right to it." She placed Joe's notebook on the projector and opened it to the first page of his betting table and the students collectively sighed and groaned. "A student here at Grant High started two betting pools concerning the love life of three other students here and your children all placed bets. The bets concerned which of two young men the young woman would chose to go out with again and how long it would take her to make her choice. An organized betting operation is illegal and any student found to be participating in an illegal activity conducted on school grounds receives two months suspension." There was a collective uproar from the parents present.

"But it's almost the end of March! You expect my daughter to finish all the schoolwork she's missed in under a month!?" one parent stood up and asked.

"Yeah!" said another. "Will our kids have to go to summer school?" Annie put up her hands to stop further questions. The parents who had stood up sat down and Annie waited until the room quieted down a little more as well.

"Only students who have experienced a medical or other extenuating circumstance are eligible for summer school. Since your students will be missing the next two months of school due to a suspension, if they are not able to complete their missed schoolwork by the end of the school year then they will be held back a year." Again the parents erupted in anger.

"That's ridiculous!" one father shouted. "So our kids screwed up and did something stupid! That's no reason to hold them back a year!"

"So they made a wager on a couple of students' love lives! That's no reason to punish them so harshly! What are they supposed to do for two months!?" another mother exclaimed.

"Isn't there some kind of middle ground?" another father asked, and was quickly followed by a chorus of 'yeahs'. Annie shook her head.

"The student handbook is very clear on the issue of illegal activity and honestly suspension should be the least of your worries," Annie informed her audience, trying her best to hide her irritation at the parents' reaction.

"What do you mean?" a parent called out.

"Because your children participated in an illegal activity involving gambling they also violated state gambling laws. And because this school is a public institution I'm required to report the activity to the authorities and I have no control over what a judge is going to decide to do about your children's actions."

"What!? My kid's gonna have a record because of this!?" another father shouted. He quickly turned to his son and smacked the back of his head. "What were you **thinking**!" Some of the other parents and guardians shared the man's sentiments while other did not. Some mothers were weeping, worried their children might get sent to juvie or prison, especially mother's whose children were currently eighteen. Other parents chose to direct their anger at the principal.

"What about the student who started this whole thing!? What's **their** punishment!?" Another chorus of 'yeahs' followed the question.

"Just like your students that student received two months suspension and will likewise have to wait and see what the courts decide."

"How do you know the students the bets were about aren't in on it?"

"Honestly I don't know that for sure but once I conclude this meeting with you all my next step is to speak to each of those students and their parents to determine if they are willingly involved in any of this." Parents continued to shout and cry out their objections and questions for several minutes and Annie had had enough. The bell signaling the start of the final period of the day had sounded and it was time to wrap things up and get these students and their parents out of there before they could stop and talk to any of their friends.

"Enough!" Annie bellowed to be heard above the dim or whining and complaining. "Your children participated in an illegal activity that was conducted on school grounds so as of right now they are suspended for two months. Now, Mr. Molina and Mr. Forester will escort groups of you and your students to their lockers to obtain any personal items your students would like to have and then escort you to the main entrance so you may leave the premises, and the authorities will be in touch. Now, please count off to ten," Annie said while pointing at students. Once ten students were standing, she motioned for Donald to come forward. "The ten of you and your parents or guardians may head to your lockers." Once the first group filed out Annie motioned for Mr. Molina to stand and then turned back to the students. Ten more students quickly stood up and filed out with Mr. Molina. Annie and her remaining audience waited until Donald returned, the parents scolding their kids as they attempted to defend themselves or apologize. When Donald returned the next group of ten students filed out, and so it went until the last group had left the auditorium.


	17. Media Sensation

It had taken most of the final period to get all the suspended students off the premises so the principal decided she would question Amy, Ben and Ricky tomorrow. However, cellphones were buzzing non-stop once school let out for the day. Those students whose parents hadn't confiscated their phones for getting suspended had texted other friends to tell them what was going on, mainly out of fear that they might be going to jail sometime soon. Amy, Ben and Ricky were unaware of what had happened because they all had to get to their jobs right after school. Ben and Ricky weren't allowed to have their cellphones with them in the butcher shop and Amy was too focused on taking care of John and her other charges at the nursery to hear her phone ringing. She and Ricky remained unaware of what had and what was happening until they got home that evening.

Lauren and Madison were already waiting in the living room when Anne pulled into the driveway. Ricky pulled in right behind her and offered to carry John's diaper bag into the house for Amy. Moments after they walked into the kitchen Lauren and Madison came rushing in.

"We need to talk to you," Madison said anxiously. "Oh, hi, Mrs. Juergens," she added when she realized she had failed to greet Amy's mother.

"Hello, Madison." Anne turned to her daughter. "I'll call you when dinner's ready." Amy nodded and began heading towards the stairs.

"Want me to watch John while you girls talk?" Ricky offered.

"Sure," Amy told him, handing him John.

"Actually Ricky should probably hear this too," Lauren chimed in as Madison quickly nodded in agreement. The four of them headed upstairs to Amy's room and Lauren shut the door once they were all inside. Everyone settled on Amy's bed and faced each other.

"So what's going on?" Amy asked, looking between her two best friends. Madison explained.

"You know those bets Joe started?" Amy nodded. "Well apparently organized gambling on school grounds is illegal so he got suspended, for like two whole months." Lauren continued the explanation.

"And everyone who placed a bet got suspended for two months too." Ricky and Amy exchanged surprised looks as Lauren continued. "The scary part is that even though a huge chuck of the school is now suspended they're still in trouble with the law and some of them might go to jail."

"I thought it was just juvie?" Madison asked. Lauren shook her head.

"Not for the ones who are eighteen already."

"That's terrible!" Amy exclaimed, causing three pairs of eyes to swivel in her direction. "What? I was angry that people were trying to profit from my circus of a life but I'm not angry enough to wish any of them would go to jail for it."

"Well maybe this'll teach them not to gossip so much or try to mess with other people's lives," Ricky declared with slight irritation. Lauren and Madison looked uncertain, considering that maybe jail time **was** a little extreme. Ricky rolled his eyes. "Look people make bad decisions and when they do there are consequences, end of story." John started fussing.

"He needs to be fed again," Amy stated, holding out her arms for her son. Lauren and Madison got up from Amy's bed and headed towards the door as Ricky transferred John to Amy's outstretched arms. She looked up at her friends. "Thanks for the heads up you guys. I'll talk to you later." They nodded and bid Amy goodnight as they turned to head down the stairs but Ricky hesitated in her doorway as she draped a blanket over her right shoulder. She looked up, sensing his eyes on her.

"What?" she asked as she expertly lifted her shirt, undid her bra, and maneuvered John into a comfortable nursing position beneath the blanket without breaking eye contact with Ricky. Standing in the bedroom doorway knowing Amy was breastfeeding their son made him blush but he wanted to ask her if he could hang around for a little longer.

"I just….." he glanced down at the carpet nervously. "I can stick around and help you get him to bed, if you want." He glanced back up at her and relaxed when he saw Amy smiling at him.

"Sure. We can give him a bath after he's done eating." Ricky nodded and then quickly headed down the stairs. Once John finished nursing, Amy carried him downstairs and she and Ricky bathed him in his infant tub then got him down to sleep, for a few hours at least.

"So what do you think tomorrow at school's gonna be like?" Ricky asked her as they tidied up the kitchen. Amy shrugged.

"I don't know. I guess it can go one of three ways. People could blame us for getting their friends suspended and try to make life difficult for us. People could blame us for getting their friends suspended and simply gossip about us some more. Or people could decide having anything to do with any of us is simply asking for trouble so they'll treat us like we're diseased or something," Amy answered humorlessly. "Regardless I'm just tired of being the person people are gossiping about or pointing at." Ricky nodded in agreement and they finished their task silently. Ricky said goodnight and headed home. That night the entire student body of Grant High, and the majority of their parents, had a hard time getting to sleep, too worried about what tomorrow would bring.

The next day Amy, Ben and Ricky were the recipients of stares and whispers again but this time there was an undertone of fear in the whispers and stares. There were also quite a few less stares than normal, considering a large chuck of the student body was suspended. The bell for first period sounded and the remaining students practically dashed to their respective classrooms. Shortly after the period began Amy, Ben and Ricky were called to Mr. Molina's office. Upon arriving Mr. Molina informed them they were going to be meeting the principal and a police officer in the conference room. They took the short walk from his office to the room in question and he motioned for Ben and Ricky to have a seat while he and Amy went inside. As he closed the door behind them Amy quietly took a seat. Across the table from her were the principal and a police officer.

"Hello, Amy," the principal greeted her.

"Principal Witherly," Amy replied.

"Amy this officer needs to ask you several questions about something that's been going on here at the school lately." Amy nodded and waited for the first question.

"Amy, my name is Officer Clark." When Amy didn't respond he continued. "Do you know a student named Joe Hampton?"

"Yes."

"Where you aware that he had organized two betting pools concerning your love life?"

"Yes."

"And how were you made aware of this?"

"My two best friends called to tell me after they found out about it."

"And when was this call made?"

"Two weeks ago."

"Are you certain?" Amy nodded. "And how did your friends find out about Mr. Hampton's betting pools?"

"They tracked him down and asked him why people were whispering about and staring at my ex-boyfriend."

"Please explain."

"One of my ex-boyfriend's best friends noticed people staring at him and whispering. She tracked down my two best friends to find out what was going on and when they didn't know the three of them went looking for Joe to find some answers, since he always seems to know what's going on around here. My friends told me Joe told them he'd overheard my ex-boyfriend say he wanted me back and that the father of my child planned to do his best to take care of me and our son so Joe decided to start taking bets about the whole situation."

"So are you saying you were unaware of Mr. Hampton's scheme prior to this phone call from your friends?"

"Yes."

"And what did you do after you found out about these bets."

"Nothing."

"And why was that?"

"Because I was at home for two weeks taking care of my newborn son and trying to stay on top of my school work."

"Did you inform either your ex-boyfriend or the father of your son about Mr. Hampton's bets?"

"I called my son's father as soon as I ended the call from my best friends."

"Why did you call him and not your ex-boyfriend?"

"My friends told me my ex-boyfriend's best friend had called him at the same time that they had called me."

"I see. Ms. Juergens did you tell anyone else about Mr. Hampton's dealings?"

"No."

"And why was that?"

"Because I'm tired of people gossiping about me anyway, since they did plenty of that when I was pregnant, and I decided to simply ignore it and do my best not to do anything at school that would encourage the rumor or gossip mill."

"Understandable. Well, thank you for your cooperation Ms. Juergens. You're free to go." Amy stood and headed back to class. Mr. Molina motioned for Ben to come inside next. He did so and took the seat Amy had just vacated.

"Hello, Benjamin." Ben nodded his greeting and the principal continued. "This officer would like to ask you a few questions." Again Ben nodded and then turned to face the officer.

"Mr. Boykewitch, is it?"

"It's Boyke**vich** actually."

"Alright. Mr. Boykewich. My name is Officer Clark. Do you know a student named Joe Hampton?"

"Yes," Ben answered nervously.

"Where you aware that he had organized two betting pools concerning your love life?"

"Yes."

"And how were you made aware of this?"

"My best friend called and told me."

"And when was this call made?" Ben thought about it for a moment.

"Two weeks ago."

"Are you certain?" Ben nodded. "And how did your friend find out about Mr. Hampton's betting pools?"

"She told me she tracked him down and asked him why people were whispering about me and staring at me."

"Why would your friend be concerned about other students whispering about and staring at you?"

"She's pretty observant and she said it couldn't be because Amy and I'd broken up since no one would really care enough about that to whisper and stare at me so much so it had to be something else. And when you need answers to something around here you go to Joe."

"I see. So are you saying you were unaware of Mr. Hampton's scheme prior to this phone call from your friend?"

"Yeah."

"And what did you do after you found out about these bets."

"What do you mean?"

"Did you do anything to encourage Mr. Hampton's betting pools."

"No, not that I could've anyway," he answered glumly.

"And what do you mean by that?"

"Well, Amy was out of school for two weeks after she had John, that's her son, and since I thought she might reconsider our relationship after she calmed down a little I just gave her some space and didn't contact her. Plus I was a little afraid to contact her thinking she might think I was only doing it because Joe started those stupid bets, even though I wanted to win her back practically from the moment she broke up with me."

"I see. Did you inform anyone else about Mr. Hampton's dealings?" Ben's brows knit together in confusion.

"No. Why would I?"

"Fair enough. Well, thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Boykewich. You're free to go." Ben stood and walked out of the office. Mr. Molina stuck his head out and motioned for Ricky to come inside next. Like the two students before him, he took a seat and waited to hear what the principal had to say.

"Hello, Ricky." Ricky remained silent so the principal continued. "This officer would like to ask you a few questions." Ricky turned to face the officer.

"Ricky, my name is Officer Clark." Ricky didn't respond. "Do you know a student named Joe Hampton?"

"Yes."

"Where you aware that he had organized two betting pools concerning your love life?"

"Yes."

"And how were you made aware of this?"

"Amy called me after she found out about it."

"How did she find out about this and when was that call made?"

"Her two best friends called to tell her about it and it was two weeks ago."

"Are you certain?" He nodded. "Do you know how her friends found out about Mr. Hampton's betting pools?"

"Yeah, they tracked him down looking for information and he told them."

"Do you know why he told them?" Ricky shrugged.

"My guess is they paid him." The officer became slightly more alert.

"Please explain." Ricky had never ratted anybody out but he was also annoyed at Joe for subjecting Amy to more gossip so he decided to tell part of the truth.

"If you need or want information around here Joe will get it for you, for a price. If he told them what he was up to then my guess is that they asked him for information, he asked for payment, they gave it to them and told him what info. they wanted, and then he told them what they wanted to know, since they'd paid for it and all."

"I see. So are you saying you were unaware of Mr. Hampton's scheme prior to this phone call from Amy?"

"Yeah."

"And what did you do after you found out about the bets."

"Nothing."

"And why was that?"

"Amy figured the best thing we could do was ignore the looks and whispers and just not add fuel to the fire."

"And you agreed with her decision?"

"No. I wanted to find Joe and punch him, but getting in trouble would've just been one more thing for Amy to worry about."

"Please explain, Mr. Underwood."

"Amy's already a teen mom because of me and she's been through a lot already. Worrying about me not being able to be around to help her take care of our son 'cuz I'm in trouble would just add to her stress."

"Ah. And did you tell anyone else about Mr. Hampton's dealings after Amy spoke with you?"

"No."

"And why was that?"

"Because in cases like this where your peers are being idiots and cruel the best thing to do is just deal with the problem yourself or ignore it because as soon as you involve teachers or other adults you just make things worse for yourself." Officer Clark and the principal shared a surprised look at Ricky's admission but let it slide for the moment, having a more pressing issue to deal with.

"Alright. Well, thank you for your cooperation, Mr. Underwood. You're free to go." Ricky stood and headed back to class; Mr. Molina shut the door behind him and took his seat once more.

"So what happens now?" he asked the room.

"Well, it's apparent that the three students the bets were about weren't made aware of them until after the betting pool began and all evidence shows that none of them did anything to encourage or manipulate the situation in their favor. We've spoken to Mr. Hampton and he's already admitted to acting alone so he will be charged as the ring leader. All other students who placed bets will be charged with participation in an illegal gambling pool but it will be up to a judge to determine their actual punishments. The principal and Mr. Molina nodded glumly as Officer Clark left the room.

"So we may a lot of students not passing this year huh?" Molina asked. Annie sighed and nodded.

"Even though it seems like such a shame that some good kids who made a bad call are gonna be punished pretty severely, part of me is glad that they're getting a reality check now before they do something really stupid or dangerous." Mr. Molina nodded in agreement and headed back to his office with a sigh. Even though the hallways were buzzing all day as news of the mass suspensions spread to students who hadn't heard about it, it wasn't until the five o'clock news that the rest of the community found out about it. Apparently one very angry parent went to the media with the story. George sat down to watch the news and was glued to the set as the words 'Grant High Gambling Scandal' flashed across the bottom of the screen.

"It appears that Grant High School has a gambling problem," the reporter began. "An estimated seventy students found themselves suspended for two months after participating in two betting pools surrounding the love lives of three Grant High Students. Sandra is with the parent of one of these suspended students right now. Sandra?" The screen changed to show a reporter standing next to a very irate looking father in front of a house.

"Yes. I'm standing here with a Mr. Rutgers, the father of one of the students suspended from Grant High yesterday who contacted us about this surprising chain of events. Mr. Rutgers, please tell us what happened."

"So I get a call from the office telling me to come to the school to speak with the principal about my daughter, but the woman who calls doesn't tell me what's going on. So I get there and I'm directed to the auditorium where I see a large group of students and their parents with the principal and two other guys sitting on the stage. The principal asks me my name then I spot my daughter and go sit next to her. Once everyone's arrived and checked in or whatever the principal tells us all that our kids placed bets in an illegal gambling operation so they're all suspended for two months."

"And what was your initial reaction to that bit of news?"

"Well naturally I couldn't believe it. First of all my daughter's never done anything illegal and second how could the school not know it was going on right under their noses? Anyway she explains that some kid was taking bets on which of two guys some girl was gonna go out with and how long it'd take them to hook up and I was angry. So a bunch of teenagers were taking bets on some other students' love lives? It's not worth two months suspension and certainly not worth legal action!"

"And what legal action are you referring to?"

"So the principal tells us that because gambling's illegal and it happened on public property, which the school is, she has to report it so on top of suspension my kid's gotta go to court and she could end up in jail or juvie!? I think only the kids who these bets were about should be punished, plus the guy who started the bets. Sure my kid shouldn't have placed a bet but isn't she being punished for her mistake enough by possibly being held back!?"

"Are you saying the school threatened to hold your daughter back on top of the suspension?"

"The principal said that if my kid can't get all caught up after her suspension before school ends then yeah, she'll get held back. 'Cuz apparently students who don't complete their schoolwork 'cuz they got suspended aren't eligible for summer school. And I thought schools were supposed to help kids succeed. The way I figure is if the school's gonna come down hard on my kid then those three need to be punished too."

"So is there evidence that the three students these bets were about were involved in anyway?" Mr. Rutgers snorted.

"Little Miss Principal said she didn't know yet but she was gonna talk to them about it once all the suspended kids and their parents left the school grounds. If she was ready to punish my kid then she should've been ready to punish those three too!" Sandra turned towards the camera.

"And there you have it folks. Over the next few days we'll continue following this story to see how it unfolds. Back to you, Simon." The screen switched back to the newsroom.

"Thank you, Sandra. So it seems the question of whether these students are actually being unduly punished might end up being answered in court don't you think, Tina?" Simons said as he turned to look at his co-anchor.

"It's possible. I think the big questions the parents of these students want answered are how did a gambling operation go unnoticed by school administrators and teachers and did these three mystery students in fact have anything to do with this." Tina segued into the next story but George had tuned it out. _What on earth goes on at that school!?_ George was lost in thought until Anne came home with Amy and John in tow, Ricky once again showing up soon after their arrival. George walked into the kitchen to confront Amy just as Ricky was walking in the kitchen door.

"You two know anything about a gambling operation at your school?" George asked them pointedly. Amy and Ricky shared a confused and surprised look.

"Why?" Amy asked.

"Apparently a bunch of your school mates got suspended for placing bets on some other students and an irate parent called the local news channel. There was a story about it on the five o'clock news." Amy sighed and nodded.

"Yeah. A guy at school heard Ricky break up with Adrian so he could help me take care of John and then he overheard Ben say he wanted to find a way to win me back so this guy started a bet to see which guy I'd pick and how long it would take me to pick one of 'em," she informed her father as she took John out of his car seat. George and Anne shared a shocked look.

"When did you find this out?" Anne asked, beginning to finish dinner preparation.

"Just before John and I came home Lauren and Madison called me to tell me they'd found out about the bets and thought I should know." Amy figured she might as well tell them everything before they asked. "Ben's friend Alice was with them when they found out and she called Ben when they called me and as soon as I hung up I called Ricky." Amy turned to look at Ricky before she continued. "He and I agreed to just ignore it and do our best not to do anything at school to make people gossip about us more and I didn't hear about the bets again until last night, when Lauren and Madison came over to tell me a bunch of people got expelled for placing them."

"So what happens now?" Anne asked. Amy shrugged.

"Apparently some of the kids might end up going to juvie and some of the ones who're eighteen might go to jail," she admitted sadly. Ricky narrowed his eyes at her.

"Will you stop feeling bad for them! They made their decision and now they've gotta deal with the consequences. It's not your fault so even if they choose to blame you you've got nothing to feel bad about." George nodded.

"He's right sweetie. No matter what they say, or how the media tries to spin this, it's not your fault. Besides, you just said you didn't know about it until after it started and you were here at home for two weeks into the whole thing so you didn't have time to do anything wrong."

"Your father's right, Amy," Anne added, putting the finishing touches on their dinner as Ashley came into the kitchen. "We'll just have to keep an eye on the news and do our best not to inflame the situation." She gave George a pointed look.

"What? Why'd you look at me!?"

"I know how you get when you're upset and I don't want you to get any bright ideas like going to reporters yourself to defend Amy or anything. If any reporters do show up here we ignore them," Anne pointedly looked at everyone in the room.

"What reporters?" Ashley asked.

"It'll probably be on the seven o'clock news on another channel by now," George informed her, making his way to the living room, Ashley, Amy and Ricky in tow. He turned on the TV and flipped to the right news channel. Sure enough the 'Grant High Gamblers' were still on the news. The reporters rehashed the story from the five o'clock news on another channel but then they launched into a new twist.

"So a new development in the story has surfaced. Apparently the Grant High student who started the betting pools acted alone and the three students the pools were focused on had no idea what was going on. Now we go live to Ian with the **mother** of the student who started all the trouble. Ian?" The screen changed to show Ian standing with a very disgusted and angry looking woman who resembled Joe.

"Yes. I'm here with Carol Hampton, the mother of the student responsible for the current troubles at Grant High. Mrs. Hampton, why did you contact the station if your son is the one behind such a mass amount of suspensions?"

"That Mr. Rutgers windbag got on my nerves."

"Please explain."

"I was called to the school this afternoon and informed that my son had organized two betting pools. When I questioned him about it, right there in the principal's office with her and the security guard present, he admitted he'd started his little bets for kicks and to make a few bucks. I reamed him good while we were there, the whole way home and pretty much the rest of the afternoon. Did I know what my son was up to? No. Does that make me a bad parent? No. It means my kid decided to do something stupid, cruel and shady and now that I've seen a side of my kid I didn't know existed I'm gonna do something about it, starting with making sure my kid is held accountable for his actions. That Mr. Rutgers wants to blame the school and the poor kids who were being manipulated by my son's bets instead of owning up to the fact his daughter participated in an activity that was illegal and cruel. My son tried to claim he wasn't hurting anybody but I took the wind outta his sails on that one. Doing anything to try and manipulate anybody is just plain wrong, not to mention sick and twisted. Oh my kid's gonna pay for what he's done. He made the bad decision and I'm gonna make sure he faces the music because I know I didn't raise him to treat people the way he did. Mr. Rutgers needs to get all the facts and stop trying to shield his kid from her actions. Your kid screwed up pal! Deal with it!"

"Were you made aware this afternoon that your son could face possible incarceration?" She nodded.

"Yeah. That or a hefty fine or both."

"And how would you feel if your son were to be incarcerated?"

"Look, no parent wants their kid to go to jail. That being said, if going to juvie or jail is what it takes for my son to realize and remember not to treat people this way then so be it. Even so, part of me still hopes he's simply charged a hefty fine and then I can select an appropriate job or jobs for him to complete to earn the money to pay the fine. Personally I want the opportunity to put him to work doing something that'll teach him how to treat and respect people better." She crossed her arms as Ian turned to the camera.

"And there you have it. Straight from the mouth of the mother of the gambling ring master." He quickly turned to Carol. "No offense." She shrugged.

"None taken. It is what it is."

"Back to you Carl." The screen switched back to the news room.

"I like her," Ashley declared with a smile. John started fussing for his evening feeding and Amy headed up to her room just as Anne called everyone for dinner.


	18. Pumps & Petitions

News of the 'Grant High Gamblers' was in the news for the rest of the week. Because of all the media attention the suspended students were all official charged in record time and by the end of the week, all eighty-six students and Joe had been arraigned. The surprising twist was that half of the suspendees actually entered pleas of not guilty; Joe was not one of them. Ricky, Amy, Ben and their friends did their best to avoid any more news of the whole debacle but it was made slightly difficult due to the fact Adrian was one of the suspended students and they were curious what was going to happen to her. Ricky was glad when the week was finally over because it meant he'd get to spend most of the weekend with Amy and John. Saturday had passed by rather pleasantly, with Ricky and Amy taking John to the park in the afternoon and chit chatting during his nap. Sunday, however, become awkward in a hurry.

Amy had awoken to John's cries at 5:30am. He was hungry and Amy hoped that after nursing he would fall back asleep for a couple more hours so she could get ready for the morning before he needed a diaper change, but no such luck. After nursing John decided he was ready to start his day and that he wanted to be held. He began fussing every time Amy tried to put him down and walk away. The only way John wouldn't fuss after being put down was if Amy stayed close by and played with him. She played with John for a solid hour before he started fussing for a clean diaper. The time caught Amy's eye and she changed his diaper in record time. Her dad was taking John for the day so she could finish up some homework and work on a couple of projects she had due in a few weeks, and, possibly, take a nice long nap. She propped John up in his bottle-feeding pillow and talked to him while she got dressed for the day, making sure to face him so he wouldn't fuss. Meanwhile Ricky had happily rushed through his morning routine and breakfast and then headed to Amy's, knowing he only had a few hours in the morning to spend with his son before George babysat him for the afternoon. Anne greeted Ricky when he knocked on the door. She noticed his happy expression and smiled at him.

"Someone's in a good mood," she told him as he entered the house. Ricky simply smiled back and shrugged.

"I guess I just woke up that way."

"Amy's still getting ready. John's been a little fussy this morning." Ricky nodded and headed upstairs towards the nursery. As he neared the top of the stairs he heard Amy's voice coming from her room.

"John, mommy fed you and changed your diaper and you're not warm so I know you're not sick. Sweetie please just wait until mommy finishes what she's doing and then I **promise** I'll play with you some more. Okay?" Ricky smiled as he approached Amy's bedroom door. He knocked on it while simultaneously pushing it open.

"You know I can…"

"RICKY!" Amy shrieked as she quickly turned away from the door. Her shriek startled John and he started wailing his displeasure. "Don't you know you're supposed to wait until the person says 'come in' before you open the door!" Ricky was frozen in her doorway, his brain trying to process what his eyes were seeing. When he'd pushed open the door Amy was sitting on her bed, John propped up beside her but a little further back on the bed, and she was holding some sort of apparatus to her breasts that had two tubes hanging down from it with some liquid in them. _What the…!?_ Amy had quickly detached the breast pump and set it on her nightstand to cover her breasts quickly so she could pick up John. She glanced in Ricky's direction as she scooped up her son and walked towards him quickly. Amy placed John in Ricky's arms and then grabbed Ricky's elbow to turn him around and usher him out of her room. She shut the door behind her just as a speechless Ricky turned back to face her. _What on earth was she doing with that thing!?_ Amy had hurried back to her breast pump to finish filling bottles for John that her dad would need this afternoon, her face beet red with embarrassment. The sound of a wailing infant reached Ricky's ears and he snapped out of his daze to soothe his son as he slowly made his way downstairs. Ricky went into the living room and took a seat on the couch to wait for Amy. Several minutes later Amy entered the kitchen, filled bottles in hand, to place them in the fridge. Anne gave her a questioning look.

"Everything alright? I heard you yell at Ricky." Amy turned an angry expression on her mother but Anne could tell Amy wasn't upset with her. "Well?" Amy groaned.

"He walked in on me using my pump! Who doesn't know that when you knock on somebody's door you're supposed to wait 'til they say 'come in' before you do!?" Anne tried to hide a smile. "It's not funny!"

"Honey, I wasn't laughing at you. I just feel kinda bad for Ricky." Amy looked at her mother in disbelief.

"Why would you feel bad for **him**!?" Anne chuckled.

"Amy, how often do you think Ricky's seen a woman using a breast pump?"

"Huh?"

"He was probably more embarrassed and shocked to see what he saw then you were to have him see you." Ricky had heard them talking and walked into the kitchen just then.

"It was kinda shocking," he admitted, blushing at the image, which would forever be ingrained in his mind. Amy pivoted around to face him, irritation still written all over her face. "Sorry?" Anne placed a plate with oatmeal, toast and sausage on the kitchen table for Amy.

"I'll let you two talk," she said, still smiling a little at the awkward situation as she carried her own breakfast plate into the dining room. Amy and Ricky just watched John for several minutes, not sure what to say to each other next. Amy inwardly breathed a sigh of relief that John wasn't fussing. Apparently the elephant in the room bothered Ricky more because he spoke first.

"Um. Could we go into the living room and sit?" Amy nodded and they made their way to the living room and got comfortable on the couch. "So you were using a breast pump?" He meant it to come out as a statement but it didn't. Amy simply gave him an expression that said 'obviously' but nodded anyway. "Why?"

"What do you mean why?"

"Well, if you breastfeed John what do you need a breast pump for?" Amy considered Ricky's question for a moment and then looked him in the eye to see if he had seriously just asked her that question.

"You really can't figure it out?" Ricky shook his head, genuinely at a loss as to the point of a breast pump in the first place. "My dad's babysitting him this afternoon, remember?" Ricky remembered but he still didn't understand why Amy needed a breast pump. At his clueless expression Amy's irritation vanished. _He really doesn't know._ "Ricky, even though John's going to be babysat he's still gonna need to eat and since I won't be around to feed him I pumped my milk into bottles in advance so my dad and Ashley can feed him when he gets hungry." Amy saw the light bulb go on in Ricky's head but seconds later his eyes clouded with confusion.

"Why don't they just feed him baby formula?"

"Why spend money on formula when they don't need to? Besides, even though formula is good, breast milk is better." Ricky nodded and looked down at John, smiling as he watched his son looking around at his surroundings.

"Does it hurt?" he asked her.

"Does what hurt?"

"Using the….thing?" he asked, blushing slightly again. Amy rolled her eyes.

"No, Ricky. It's no more uncomfortable than nursing."

"Wait, nursing's uncomfortable for you?"

"You get used to it." Ricky glanced at Amy's chest and then back up at her face. She noticed and raised an eyebrow in question, causing Ricky to look away for a moment and clear his throat. John chose that moment to coo and move his arms a little, causing his parents to smile at him, breaking the tension that was building in the air.

"So what are you gonna do today while your dad watches John?"

"Just some homework. And if I get enough of it done I'll take a nap," Amy told him with a smile as she reached for John's right hand and let him grip her finger. Ricky smiled at her, even though she didn't notice. He enjoyed watching Amy interact with their son and he couldn't help but smile when he watched them. Ricky's cellphone rang and he passed John to Amy so he could answer it. It was a number he didn't recognize.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Ricky, it's Grace."

"Hey, Grace. What's up?"

"I was just wondering if you'd like to come over for lunch today. There's something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Sure I guess. What time?"

"12:30."

"Okay. I'll be there." He hung up and moments later Amy's cell rang. She and Ricky chuckled as she passed John back to him so she could answer her phone. It was Grace.

"Hi, Grace."

"Hi, Amy. How are you?"

"I'm good. What's up?"

"I was wondering if you could come over for lunch today. You can even bring John if you want."

"Lunch would be fine I guess. Any particular reason?" Amy asked curiously, since Grace had never invited Amy over to her house for any reason.

"I wanted to discuss something with you. I've also invited Ricky to lunch and he said he'd be there and I'd really appreciate it if you could come too," Grace's voice pleaded.

"Sure."

"Great! I'll see you at 12:30."

"Okay, Grace. See you then."

"Bye." Amy looked at Ricky and he shrugged his shoulders.

"Guess we'll find out when we get there." Amy nodded and went to double check that she'd packed everything John would need for the afternoon into his diaper bag while Ricky stayed in the living room playing with John. When she returned she set up his activity mat and Ricky laid him on it on his back. They laid on their stomachs next to it and spent the next couple of hours watching John smile and gurgle at the brightly colored objects hanging above his head and try to reach for them, only taking breaks to change and feed him as needed. While they were playing Grace called Ben.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Ben, it's Grace."

"Hey."

"So I was wondering if you could come over for lunch today because there's something I'd like to talk to you about."

"Oh? What's that?"

"I'd rather wait until lunch. This is something I wanna discuss with you, Amy and Ricky. I've already called them and asked them to join me for lunch and I'd appreciate it if you came over too." Ben sighed with frustration

"Grace, the whole gambling thing's been all over the news and I'd rather not rehash it."

"Oh I understand, and I don't plan to. This is something else." Now Ben was curious.

"Sure, Grace. I'll come over for lunch. What time?"

"12:30."

"Okay. See you then." He hung up and flopped back on his bed. _When will the drama end?_ Back at Amy's George interrupted Amy and Ricky's family time with John.

"So how's my favorite grandson doing today?" he asked with a smile. Amy returned his smile and scooped John up before she stood to greet her father.

"He's good," she told him as he held out his arms for his grandson. "I'll get you his diaper bag." She turned to go pick it up as Ricky stopped down to tickle one of John's feet.

"You be a good boy for grandpa okay?" John merely kicked his foot in response, causing Ricky and George to chuckle. Amy returned with the diaper bag and handed it to her dad.

"See you guys later," George announced as he headed out the door to his house next door, stopping to take one of John's arms and make him wave bye-bye to his parents. Amy shook her head at her dad's antics and then checked her watch.

"It's just after twelve. Should we go ahead and head over?" Ricky nodded.

"We can carpool if you want."

"Sure. Just let me get my purse." Amy headed to her room to retrieve her purse. She found her mom and told her she and Ricky had been invited to Grace's for lunch and that she'd be back later. Ricky waited for Amy at the front door and then held it open for her as she walked out of the house. They walked to his car and got buckled in in silence. It wasn't until Ricky had pulled out onto the street that Amy asked the question she'd been trying to answer all morning.

"So what do you think Grace wants to talk to us about?"

"No clue." They were silent for the remainder of the drive. When they arrived at Grace's they were surprised to run into Ben. Ben inwardly cringed when he saw Amy and Ricky arriving together but hid it and greeted them politely. He rang the doorbell and Grace answered the door, with a smile of course.

"Hi guys. Come on in." They entered the foyer and waited as Grace closed the door. She motioned them to join her in the living room. "My mom's almost done fixing lunch so it should only be a few more minutes." The trio nodded and then looked at each other, silently arguing as to who would ask Grace what this was all about, but she didn't make them wait for an answer. "So you're probably wondering what I wanted to talk to you about." They nodded. "Well…..it's about this whole gambling thing." Ricky and Amy shared a surprised look that also held a small amount of annoyance but Ben was unfazed since he already knew, sort of, what this lunch meeting was about.

"What about it?" Amy asked, doing her best to keep the irritation out of her voice. As far as she was concerned Joe was an opportunistic idiot and whatever happened to him because of what he'd recently done he had coming to him.

"I was thinking of starting a petition to help get a lighter sentence for some of the first time offenders." She quickly continued her explanation when she noticed Amy and Ricky's annoyed expressions. "It's just that these students are already missing two months of school and might get held back and I thought that there might be a way to teach these teens a lesson without having any of them go to jail and my suggestion might go over better with the judge if you three were on board." Ricky wasn't convinced but Amy was now slightly curious.

"And just what kind of petition did you have in mind?" Grace smiled and Amy could feel excitement getting ready to pour out of her.

"Okay. So the betters all got suspended for two months, right?" Again the trio nodded. "But they're not doing anything, at least I don't image most of them are. So why not give them court-ordered community service that they have to complete by the end of their suspension? That way they're being put to work so they stay out of trouble and they're also paying their debt to society by having the community service court-ordered and monitored. And I thought you three could suggest possible places where the students could serve their community service. I've come up with some that I think are related to what they've done wrong but if the judge sees that you three have some places you think would be appropriate too then she might go for this option instead of the fine or imprisonment. So what do you think?" Their eyes got wide with surprise; they were very impressed with Grace's idea. They turned to speak to each other but Kathleen called them for lunch. They walked into the kitchen and saw that the kitchen able had been set. Grace looked at her mother for an explanation and Kathleen smiled.

"I know you wanted to talk to your friends about your petition so I'll give you four some privacy." She fixed herself a plate and then took it into the dining room and Tom did the same, stopping to salute them before joining his mother. The four teens looked at each other and then began serving themselves. Grace waited until they were all sitting down to ask them their opinion.

"So? What do you guys think?"

"Well," Amy began. "While personally I think Joe's an opportunistic idiot who tried to manipulate my life to make a few bucks and our fellow school mates are cruel for playing games with my life too, I'm not so upset with them anymore that I'd be happy to see them all go to jail. But I'm not sure a petition is gonna change anything." She turned to look at Ricky for support, and he didn't disappoint.

"I agree. It's not like they just messed up at school and got punished; they broke a state law. That's serious and there's serious consequences they gotta face. Plus, like Joe's mom said, these kids gotta take responsibility for their actions and, unfortunately, that might mean some time in jail or juvie for some of them." Seeing Grace's disheartened expression he quickly added "But we can always hope the judge just makes 'em all pay a fine." Grace didn't look encouraged and turned to Ben for his opinion.

"I kinda agree with Ricky. Don't do the crime if you can't do the time."

"So you guys aren't interested in trying **anything** to help them out?" Grace looked back and forth between her friends hopefully. Amy didn't have the heart to shoot her down and she truly wasn't so upset about the whole thing that she wanted to be the reason a bunch of teenagers went to jail.

"Grace, do you have any reason to believe your petition could work?"

"I don't know. It's just an idea."

"I'll tell you what. If you talk to a lawyer about this and he or she says there's a chance it could work, then I'll go along with it." Ricky stared at Amy is disbelief.

"Amy! These people tried to manipulate us and make some money in the process! That's just downright cruel! If the legal system is willing to call them out on it then I say let the courts figure out how to punish them." He angrily stuffed a forkful of pot roast into his mouth and chewed.

"Ricky," Amy said gently, getting his attention.

"We had a lapse in judgment that produced a human being. Are we really in any position to pass judgment on other teens for making a poor decision?" Ricky huffed in irritation. _She has a point._

"Alright fine! If a lawyer says it might help then I'll go along with it." Grace's face lit up and she turned to Ben, hoping he'd be on aboard now too. He rolled his eyes.

"Fine," he stated grumpily. "If a lawyer says this little stunt will help them then I'll go along with it, but only if it's actually going to make a difference."

"Thanks you guys! I'll get right on it!" They finished their lunch chatting about school and other random topics and then the trio said their goodbyes. Ricky and Amy were quiet on the drive back to Amy's house.

"You really think this'll work?" Ricky asked her as he pulled into the driveway. Amy shrugged.

"It can't hurt, right?"

"Guess we'll see." Amy opened the door to climb out. "I'll be over tonight to help you get John ready for bed." Amy nodded in acknowledgement. She shut the door and turned to walk into the house when Ricky called out the open window after her. "I hope you get that nap too." She looked over her shoulder at him and smiled. He returned it before backing out of the driveway. Amy worked on her homework steadily for a couple of hours and was able to get in a solid nap. When she woke up she picked up and organized John's things and let her mind wander. _If I were gonna suggest these teens volunteer somewhere meaningful, where would I suggest they go? They started a bet to see which guy the teen mom would pick so it should probably be related to teen or single moms._ Amy smiled as one possible location hit her. _I could suggest some of them volunteer at the local women's resource center. Let's see how they like learning about all the issues single mothers face._ While Amy was pondering possible volunteering venues Grace was meeting with Ruben. She had called and asked him to come to her house as soon as Amy, Ben and Ricky left. He had some work to finish up but promised to stop by later in the afternoon. Once he arrived, he, Grace and Kathleen sat down at the kitchen table to talk.

"So what is it you wanted to talk to me about, Grace?"

"The gambling case, well, cases."

"Grace, I can't discuss ongoing cases with the public."

"Oh, no, no, no, I know that. This is something else." Rueben arched an eyebrow in question.

"Alright."

"I was wondering if there was a way to convince the judge to go easier on the first time offenders and I came up with an idea of a petition of sorts that Amy, Ben and Ricky were all on board with." Grace looked at Ruben hopefully.

"What kind of petition?"

"Well the way I figure these teens aren't doing anything for the next two months to learn their lesson so maybe the judge could order them to perform community service that has to be completed by the end of their school suspension or they have to pay that fine for gambling. And the community service they'd have to do would be at places that Amy, Ben or Ricky suggested that were related to what the whole bet was about in the first place." Ruben looked impressed.

"It's an interesting proposal, Grace. But why didn't the three of them come to me, or another lawyer, with this suggestion?"

"Because it's actually my idea but I knew it might go over better with the judge if those three were on board. I told them about it earlier today and they said they'd only go along with me if a lawyer told me this petition would in fact help these teens out." Grace looked at Ruben hopefully and he smiled at her gently.

"Grace, illegal gambling operations are serious offenses, even if the perpetrators are mostly minor teenagers. While Amy, Ben and Ricky's vote to punish these students less severely would definitely carry more weight in the eyes of the court than if you'd presented this petition yourself, I'm not sure if there're any legal grounds to substitute community service for a fine or incarceration in this case." He watched uncertainty creep into Grace's eyes. "I'm just giving you the legal facts. As a lawyer I can tell you that petitions for leniency that come from the victims of a crime can carry a lot of weight but it's still up to the judge to interpret the laws and sentence the guilty parties." Grace nodded resolutely.

"Okay. I'll tell them what you said." Grace waited until the kitchen door closed before exhaling a deep breath. "I was hoping for more promising news." Kathleen squeezed her hand.

"You had a really good idea to help these kids and now all you can do is wait and see what the judge says." Grace nodded but she still felt down about the whole situation. The rest of the day for Amy, Ben and Ricky concluded uneventfully. They finished up their homework, ate their dinners, got ready for bed, and went to sleep, only slightly wondering if they were really on board with Grace's petition. Had they known about the firestorm they were going to all be facing the next evening **because** of Grace's idea, they would've laid awake the entire night deciding which side of the fence they were truly on about it.


	19. News Leak

Ruben sat patiently outside Judge Norbert's office waiting to see her. He had given Grace's petition a lot of thought last night and, even though he could not come up with an legal grounds that would allow the students' fines or incarcerations to be substituted with community service, he wanted to inform the judge of Grace's petition and get her thoughts on it. The door opened and the judge motioned Ruben inside.

"Ruben. What brings you by my office this morning? The first gambler case isn't scheduled to begin until the middle of next week," the judge stated as she took a seat behind her desk. Ruben took a seat as well before explaining his desire for this meeting.

"I'd like to discuss a potential petition concerning these students."

"What sort of petition?" the judge asked, sitting up straighter in her chair.

"A Grant High student, who hasn't been suspended, asked to see me yesterday and discussed a potential petition that would ask you to consider granting all first time offenders community service in lieu of paying a fine or being incarcerated." The judge raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"And why would this student be interested in bringing me this particular petition?"

"This particular student just has a habit of wanting to help people and she thought that if the three students whom the betting pools were focused around came to you with suggestions of places where these students could serve their community service that you might be more willing to be lenient on the first time offenders."

"And why are you bringing this to my attention?"

"This young woman told me that the three students previously mentioned told her they wouldn't go along with her petition unless they were sure doing so would positively affect the judgment against these students."

"Ruben, are you telling me all this because you hope it will bring about a more lenient judgment for your daughter?" the judge asked quizzically. Ruben shook his head.

"Not entirely. As a father of a student about to be tried, I hope my daughter does not end up incarcerated. As a lawyer, I hope there's a way these young adults can be taught a lesson about the seriousness of illegal gambling **without** being incarcerated and having that period of incarceration negatively affect their education. As things stand right now these students have a good chance of being held back a year anyway." The judge nodded. Suddenly there was a knock at the door.

"Come in." A woman poked her head into the room.

"Judge, you have a meeting in ten minutes." Judge Norbert nodded.

"Thank you, Carol." The judge stood and picked up her briefcase. "Walk with me, Ruben," she said as she made her way towards the door of her office. She closed it behind them as she headed down the corridor towards a conference room. "Tell these students to compile a list of potential activities by the middle of this week and come see me. If I find them to be appropriate I'll take their petition into consideration when the trails begin next week." Judge Norbert had stopped in front of the conference room and turned to face Ruben. They shook hands and Ruben turned around to walk away and call Grace. What he and the judge didn't know is that a reporter was getting a drink of water right behind them and heard this little piece of insider information. Once the judge stepped inside the conference room the reporter dashed down the corridor and raced to his car. He returned to his news station office in record time, although careful not to break any traffic laws, and raced to his editor's office, banging rapidly on the door.

"Come in!" the editor yelled, more to stop the energetic door banger than for any particular reason. She looked up when she saw who it was and then returned her gaze to the reports in front of her. "What is it, Ian?" Ian was a little winded from running but there was a huge smile on his face.

"Wanna hear a new development in the gamblers cases?" The editor's head shot up.

"Shut the door and fill me in."

School was much more subdued this week, with some of the excitement about the suspensions having dissipated. It was high school after all so there were still a few stares and whispers about the 'Troublesome Trio', as the student body had dubbed Amy, Ben and Ricky, but otherwise the 'Trio' and their friends went through their day without any significant amounts of new drama. Ruben was not so lucky. He was working in his office in the middle of the day when his phone rang and he absentmindedly answered it.

"Hello. My name is Ian Sanders with Chanel Six News. Do you know why Judge Norbert is considering community service for a select group of students and not others?" Ruben's mind snapped to attention. He didn't know how this reporter found out about his conversation with Judge Norbert but he knew better than to let anything slip to a reporter.

"Come again?"

"Were you unaware that Judge Norbert was considering community service instead of requiring the full measure of the law to be leveled against certain students?" Ruben knew he had to call Judge Norbert about this so he played dumb.

"As I am unaware of this development I have no comment. Excuse me, I need to make some inquiries of my own." Ruben knew that the reporter would infer from his words that he was calling Judge Norbert but that he was doing so for answers only. Ruben quickly dialed the Judge's office and her assistant picked up. Ruben quickly explained the phone call he'd just received and was patched through to her office.

"So have you heard?"

"That Chanel Six knows we spoke this morning? Yes. I just received a call from one of their reporters. I haven't even called the students to tell them to go ahead with the petition yet!" Ruben said exasperatedly.

"This is gonna be bad."

"Should I still tell the students to move forward?" Ruben asked hesitantly. If the media spun this to make it seem like the judge was playing favorites, she could be asked to recuse herself or the students' cases could be moved to another jurisdiction.

"Yes," the judge answered with a sigh. "I said I'd consider the petition if I found the service activities appropriate and I intend to. We'll just have to wait and see how this all plays out but I guarantee you it's gonna be a **long** week." Minutes after Ruben ended the call with Judge Norbert his office was flooded with calls. Apparently news of the potential community service/incarceration swap had been posted to the Chanel Six website and parents were up in arms. They had called their children's lawyers demanding answers and lawyer after lawyer after lawyer now wanted to meet with him to discuss their client's case. Ruben felt a headache coming on and took two Aleve. _It's definitely going to be a long week._ He told his assistant to hold all his calls unless they were from his Adrian or Cindy and then made a phone call of his own, to Grace's mother.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Kathleen. It's Ruben."

"Hello Ruben. What can I do for you?"

"I'd like to speak to Grace about her petition and it's a matter of urgency. I spoke to the Judge this morning and she said if she, Amy, Ben and Ricky come up with a list of potential community service activities by the middle of this week and meet with her to discuss them then she'll take the petition into consideration when the trials begin next week."

"That's great news! Grace will be thrilled!"

"I'll be in touch soon."

"Okay. I'll let Grace know." Ruben ended the call and sat in his office for several minutes thinking of how he was going to get through this week with is sanity intact. Kathleen saw that it was lunchtime at school and called Grace.

"Hey, mom. What's up?"

"I just got off the phone with Ruben and it looks like your petition may work out after all!" Grace gasped happily.

"That's great news!"

"There's a catch though."

"Oh?"

"You guys need to have a list of places put together by the middle of this week and then meet with the judge so she can review your suggestions."

"I'm sure it won't be a problem. I'll let them know now." Grace ended the call and quickly went in search of the trio. She found Amy first and asked her to follow her as she tracked down Ben and then Ricky. They followed Grace to a secluded corner of the parking lot where they could make sure no one overheard them. "Okay so I spoke to Ruben about the petition and he talked to the judge today and she said if we got together a list of places by the middle of the week and then talked to her about them she'd consider the petition when the trials start next week!" Grace explained excitedly. The Trio didn't look as enthusiastic.

"So we've got 'til Wednesday to come up with places or activities?" Ricky asked. Grace nodded her head.

"Come on you guys! The gamblers will be doing something useful and helping other people as they learn their lesson not to gamble again, or at least illegally. Plus you get to help pick what they're going to be doing so in a way you get to help punish them," she added hopefully in an attempt to convince them to still go along with the idea. Amy sighed.

"Alright. So there's four of us suggesting places so let's say we each need to come up with just one place or activity by tomorrow and then if we've got any duplicates we'll have a whole 'nother day to complete the list. Deal?" She looked at everyone in turn and they nodded. The four teens dispersed to continue their lunches and think of possibilities. At the end of the school day Amy went to work at the nursery while Ben and Ricky went to work at the butcher shop. While the three of them were busy at work George tuned into the five o'clock news to see if there'd been any new developments in the gambling situation. The news didn't disappoint him.

"So there's been a new development in the cases of the 'Grant High Gamblers'. It seems that some students may have a guaranteed shot at community service instead of having to pay a fine or be incarcerated. Our own Ian Sanders discovered this development and we'll go to him for the story. Ian?" The screen changed to show Ian, the same man who had interviewed Joe's mother, standing outside the courthouse.

"This morning Judge Norbert, the judge who will be presiding over the Gamblers' cases, met with a lawyer to discuss potential community service activities that could be considered in lieu of other punishment options. The judge said, and I quote," Ian stated, glancing down at a notecard. "'Tell these students to compile a list of potential activities by the middle of this week and come see me. If I find them to be appropriate I'll take their petition into consideration when the trails begin next week.'" Ian looked back up at the camera. "Now we can only speculate as to who these students are that the judge was talking about or why this group of students is being considered for community service instead of any other punishment. When we attempted to contact Judge Norbert about this new development she declined to comment so we can only hope that Judge Norbert isn't playing favorites and that justice will in fact prevail in these cases. Back to you, Carl." The screen changed back to the newsroom.

"We will follow this new development closely and see how it affects the cases as these students' trials begin next week." George vaguely listened to the rest of the news as his mind wandered. When Amy arrived home a couple hours later George raced over to Anne's to fill Amy in on what was happening with the cases. When Amy saw her dad's anxious expression she sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Dad, if it's about the gamblers I'd rather not talk about it right now. I'd at least like a chance to eat and get my son to bed before I worry about it anymore today."

"Oh, you'll wanna heard about this," he assured her, and Ricky, who was standing behind her. He motioned to the living room and they looked at each other before following him. He quickly turned on the TV to the news as they all sat down on the couch.

"It seems news of the petition has enraged a lot of parents of the gamblers left out of the loop," the news anchor began as Ricky and Amy shared surprised, nervous glances. "It seems that news of this supposedly behind-closed-door deal has got a lot of parents asking just what they need to do to ensure **their** child receives community service instead of a punishment of a fine or incarceration and our reports indicate that the DA's office has been flooded with calls from these parent's lawyers to ask what kind of legal loophole the petitioner's lawyer found that they missed. There's also quite a bit of speculation about how this petitioner's group of students was formed in the first place. For some insight into these legal questions we spoke with our legal consultant Elizabeth." The anchor turned to the woman sitting next to him. "Now Elizabeth, **is** there a legal loophole that would allow one of the gamblers' lawyers to petition to substitute community service for any other form of punishment for the charge of illegal gambling?"

"That is such an issue with this new development because actually there isn't. Even examining all possible defenses for these students' actions, regardless of their age, the judgment for illegal gambling is either a) paying a steep fine, b) a period of incarceration, or c) paying a fine **and** being incarcerated for a time. How a lawyer was able to convince a judge that there are grounds for considering a more lenient sentence of community service can only be explained as being unethical. And as for how a group of students came together to bring this petition as one party is simply a legal mystery to me since, to my knowledge, all students were charged individually last week. There's definitely something fishy going on here." While Ricky and Amy shared another surprised look, Adrian was watching the news with her parents and she was furious. She quickly turned on her father as she shot up from her position on the couch.

"How'd they do it!?" Ruben stared at her questioningly.

"How did who do what?"

"Those petitioners or whatever! How'd their lawyer get them community service!? You work for the DA's office and you never mentioned that I could get out of jail with community service instead! I'M YOUR DAUGHTER! I thought you'd do everything possible to keep me outta jail!"

"Calm down, Adrian. You don't understand." She rolled her eyes, flipped her hair over her shoulder and then glared at her father.

"And just what don't I understand, **dad**," she said the last word with as much sarcasm as she could muster. Cindy wanted to understand the situation as well.

"What's going on, Ruben?" she asked calmly, hoping her tone of voice would calm her daughter just a little bit.

"That legal consultant is right. There're no legal grounds for a lawyer to petition that a judge replace the punishment for committing this particular crime with community service. As for everything else this news station and their legal consultant has speculated concerning this development, they don't have all the facts." He saw Adrian getting ready to ask him what he meant. "And before you ask me what facts you know I can't tell you any details concerning ongoing cases." Adrian huffed angrily and stormed to her room and slammed her down shut. Cindy sighed.

"Ruben, tell me the truth. Is our daughter going to go to jail?" Cindy asked, her voice breaking slightly. Ruben pulled her into a hug.

"I sincerely hope not, and that's all I can say right now, Cindy." Cindy nodded and buried her face in Ruben's shirt, letting the tears she'd been holding in for the past week finally fall. Adrian paced angrily in her room for several minutes, muttering to herself in a mixture of English and Spanish. Finally she plopped down at her desk and dialed Grace's number.

"Hi, Adrian! How are you?" Adrian rolled her eyes at Grace's constantly cheerful attitude.

"I've been better. Did you watch the news tonight?" Grace was silent for a moment before answering.

"Yeah…" she said hesitantly, not sure what Adrian was getting at.

"It's just not fair! A bunch of students get together and form a petition that the judge is **actually** gonna consider but the rest of us aren't offered the same thing! What makes them so special!" Grace was at a loss for words. She'd watched the news sure, but she didn't know if she was allowed to tell anyone about the petition. She needed to find out.

"Uh, Adrian, I've got another call coming in. I'll call you back alright? Promise!" Grace quickly hung up and Adrian stared at her phone, not sure her friend had just hung up on her when she needed to talk. Adrian yelled in frustration and flopped down on her bed facedown and screamed into one of her pillows. In the living room Ruben's phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Ruben, it's Grace and I gotta ask you something about the petition." She was speaking quickly and Ruben could hear the nervousness and anxiousness in her voice. He motioned to Cindy that he needed to step outside and then did so.

"Calm down and tell me what's going on." He was careful not to say too much in case someone else, Cindy or Adrian overheard him

"Adrian just called me upset about the petitioners and I wasn't sure if I was allowed to tell her to calm down because it's not what she thinks so I told her I had another call and that I'd call her back later." Suddenly Ruben understood Grace's tone of voice.

"You did the right thing. Don't say anything to anyone just yet and just let this all play out. Alright?" He heard Grace sigh with relief.

"Okay. Thanks, Ruben."

"You're welcome." While Ruben went back inside to try and calm down his daughter Grace quickly called Amy. She figured calling would be safer so no one would accidentally read the text message Grace wanted to send. Amy and Ricky had excused themselves from George's presence to tend to John and were upstairs in the nursery when Amy got Grace's call. Seeing her name on caller ID Amy motioned for Ricky to shut the door before she answered. She put Grace on speaker.

"Hey, Grace. Ricky's here and you're on speaker. Did you watch the news?" Amy asked her quickly and nervously.

"Yeah, but that's not why I'm calling," Grace informed her, likewise speaking quickly and nervously. "Adrian called me upset about the news and I wasn't sure if I was allowed to say anything, you know, to help calm her down, so I called Ruben. He said I was right not to and you guys shouldn't either. I'm gonna call Ben and tell him. Talk to you guys tomorrow." Grace hung up and Ricky and Amy breathed a little sigh of relief. So far no one knew the four of them were behind the petition or what is was really all about. All they had to do was keep their mouths shut about it until Wednesday. True to her word, Grace called Adrian back eight minutes after she'd hung up.

"What!?" Adrian answered harshly.

"Still upset about it? Adrian, the news just said the judge was gonna **consider** it. She didn't say it was definite. I mean, you all could still get the exact same treatment, no favorites, so maybe you shouldn't get so upset about it?" Adrian scoffed.

"So what? You **want** me to go to jail?" Grace was quick to reassure her.

"Oh, of course not! I don't want **any** of you to have to go to jail! I think that's a little too harsh of a punishment for what you all did. Of **course** I don't want you to go to jail, Adrian." Adrian's temper soothed slightly at the earnestness of her friend's words. Grace spent a half hour listening to Adrian rant before hanging up. _Lord, please give us the wisdom to pick appropriate service activities so the judge picks our petition instead of jail for everyone_ Grace prayed as she got ready for bed, and again before she climbed into bed that night. Ricky and Ben spent their time getting ready for bed trying to figure out a good service activity and had decided on it by the time they fell asleep. Amy had a hard time falling to sleep that night, as uncomfortable thoughts ran through her mind. _My service choices could affect the future of over eighty teenagers! What if the judge doesn't like them? How am I gonna feel about sending a bunch of teenagers to jail!?_


	20. Passes & Propositions

Amy, Ben, Grace and Ricky agreed to meet up before school started to discuss the service activities they'd come up with. Grace had arrived first and was already waiting in the parking lot when Ricky arrived. They greeted each other and then sat on a bench silently as they waited for the others to show. Ben arrived next and Amy arrived shortly after him. They again stood in a secluded area of the parking lot so no one would overhear them; Grace spoke first.

"So I came up with the suggestion of having them volunteer at the Rescue Mission. I figure that helping those less fortunate might make them appreciate the lives they live and not wanna try to manipulate others." The others nodded in agreement and then Amy offered her suggestion.

"Since the bet included me I suggest they volunteer at the Women's Resource Center. That way they can learn a little bit about what mothers, teen or otherwise, go through and hopefully learn to respect women a little better." Ben spoke next.

"I suggest they volunteer to tutor middle school kids, through that mentoring program that gets advertised all the time. Kinda like Grace's idea I figure that maybe helping someone else might make them appreciate their own lives and decide not to try and manipulate other people. Plus this way they'll be using their current educational knowledge to help other kids do well in school." They turned to look at Ricky, waiting to hear his suggestion.

"I suggest they volunteer at the YMCA, specifically with children's programs. I thought that maybe if they had to be responsible for someone else and act like role models than they might think twice about how their actions affect other people." Again everyone nodded, agreeing that all the suggestions were good ones.

"So what do we do now?" Amy asked, directing the question to Grace.

"Well, Ruben called me a little later last night and said he scheduled a meeting for us with the judge for Wednesday during our lunchtime. We either need our parents to come pick us up or for our parents to just excuse us and then one of them takes us to the courthouse and then back to school."

"If we get our parents to excuse us I can drive us all there and back," Ricky offered.

"Yeah, that would probably be better," Grace conceded.

"But what do we tell our parents?" Ben asked. "We haven't told them what we're up to so how do we get them to excuse us from school?" Grace suddenly looked a little alarmed.

"I forgot about that." She looked at Amy and Ricky for ideas but Amy just shrugged.

"Actually we don't need our parents to excuse us." Three heads swiveled to stare at Ricky in confusion. "All we need to be excused from school is a note from Mr. Molina. If we tell him we were asked to meet with the judge about the gambling cases I'm sure he'd give us all passes to leave school for a little while."

"Are you sure?" Amy asked, not certain about this piece of information.

"Positive. Let's go talk to him now," he said inclining his head towards the school.

"One way to find out," Ben said more confidently than he actually felt. They made their way to Mr. Molina's office and knocked on the door. He motioned them in and Ricky closed the door once they were all inside.

"What can I do for you guys?" he asked them. They looked at each other and then three pairs of eyes turned to Ricky, nominating him to be their spokesperson.

"A lawyer from the DA's office scheduled a meeting for us to talk to the judge handling the gambling cases Wednesday during our lunchtime. We'll need passes to leave campus and hopefully we'll be back before the end of the next period." Mr. Molina was surprised at this piece of information. He looked at Grace.

"And why does the judge want to meet with **you**, Grace? You weren't involved with the bets in any way." Grace shifted in her seat uncomfortably a little, not sure what to say. Suddenly she had an idea.

"I need to make a phone call real quick," she told him instead of answering his question. She quickly took out her cell phone and dialed Ruben's number.

"Mr. Enriquez's office, Willow speaking. How may I help you?"

"My name is Grace Bowman and I need to speak to Mr. Enriquez please. It's about the appointment he scheduled for me and some friends of mine." She glanced at Mr. Molina to gauge his reaction and cringed a little when she noticed his raised eyebrows. She was patched through directly to Ruben. He had instructed his assistant to hold all class unless they were from a specific list of individuals that he gave her and, luckily for Grace, she was on that list.

"What can I do for you, Grace?" he asked her once he picked up.

"We're sitting in Mr. Molina's office and I was wondering if you could explain why we need to leave campus for a little while tomorrow during lunch."

"Sure. Put him on." She handed the phone to Mr. Molina.

"Hello, Ruben."

"Hello, Mark. What exactly would you like me to explain?"

"Apparently Grace, Amy, Ricky and Ben have an appointment to speak with the judge handling these gambling cases tomorrow and they came to me asking for passes to leave campus."

"Alright."

"What I'm wondering is why the judge wishes to speak to Grace. And instead of answering me when I asked her directly she called you." Ruben smiled at Grace's quick thinking.

"Ms. Bowman and the other three students currently in your office have been discussing the potential outcomes of these cases and have a few legal questions and concerns that I couldn't answer that they'd like to speak to the judge about. The judge agreed to speak with them briefly only because three of them were at the center of this whole conflict and this Wednesday is the only chance she'll have to answer their inquiries." Mr. Molina nodded in understanding.

"I see. Thanks for clearly that up, Ruben."

"You're welcome."

"Goodbye."

"Goodbye." Mr. Molina ended the call and handed the phone back to Grace. He then took out his pass tablet and began making out four passes, putting tomorrow's date on the top, and then handed them to their respective student. They each took their pass silently.

"Since Ruben scheduled this meeting and the judge is going to be answering your questions and concerns at this meeting, I have no problem issuing you these passes. I'm giving them to you now to save time but please don't lose them between now and tomorrow." He gave them each a pointed look and they all nodded, wisely not asking him exactly what Ruben had 'explained' to him. They walked out of his office and down the hallway before speaking again.

"Well that was easy," Ben stated with surprise in his voice. Amy nodded.

"Yeah. Now all we gotta do is hope the judge likes our suggestions and then we can forget about all this secrecy. Personally it's making me nervous." Grace nodded enthusiastically even though her eyes clearly displayed her own nervousness.

"Me too. I don't like keeping secrets, even if it is just to try and help people." They all quickly secured their passes in their purses and wallets and then went their separate ways to start the school day. Back at the courthouse Judge Norbert was preparing for a meeting with the Ethics Committee. She had received a notice that morning saying that, in light of last night's news report, the committee wanted her to discuss the nature of this petition that she was considering. While she could've refused, doing so just would've added more fuel to the fire. She had to spend some time that morning mentally preparing herself to battle the committee because, legally, she had done nothing wrong and she truly wanted to have an option of other punishments to consider for these young adults besides imprisonment or fines. She read and ruled on various motions for other cases as she waited for the clock hands to tell her it was time for this unnecessary meeting; too bad her assistant beat her to it. Carol poked her head in ten minutes before the meeting was to begin but the judge merely nodded in acknowledgment before Carol could say a word. The judge quickly made her way to the appropriate conference room. _Might as well get this over with._ She walked in and took a seat in an empty chair facing the four members of the committee. The committee chairman spoke as soon as she was seated.

"So it's come to our attention that you have agreed to entertain a petition for leniency from several students that have been charged in connection with the Grant High gambling operation." The judge remained silent. "Is this correct?" Even though she knew she shouldn't, the judge couldn't help but smile a little before she answered, being mildly amused at the fact that she could answer honestly and that her honest answers would annoy the committee.

"No." The committee members looked at each other.

"I'll rephrase the question. Is it true that a lawyer spoke with you about the possibility of submitting to you a petition of leniency?" Again the judge smiled slightly.

"No." The committee chairman was becoming irritated.

"Did you say, as the Chanel Six reported quoted, 'Tell these students to compile a list of potential activities by the middle of this week and come see me. If I find them to be appropriate I'll take their petition into consideration when the trails begin next week.'"

"Yes," she answered honestly.

"Then how can you sit there and claim no lawyer spoke to you about the possibility of submitting a petition of leniency?"

"Because the lawyer in question didn't intend to submit anything to me." This time a different member of the committee spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I just said."

"Why would this lawyer discuss such a petition if he or she had no intentions of submitting it themselves? Any licensed lawyer can submit a petition so there would be no need for **this** lawyer to speak to you on another lawyer's behalf." The judge remained silent, having nothing to add to the chairperson's statement. The chairman huffed in frustration.

"Sybil, are you **purposely** trying to obstruct our investigation into this matter by being flippant?" The judge stuck her bottom lip out slightly and arched her eyebrows as she shook her head.

"I'm simply answering your questions truthfully."

"All you've told us so far in this meeting is that you **did** tell a lawyer you would entertain a petition of leniency but that the lawyer in question did **not** intent to submit said petition him or herself. What exactly are the terms of this possible petition?"

"For leniency." The committee members collectively groaned. A third member of the committee chimed in.

"Sybil, our message informing you of what we wanted to uncover in this meeting was clearly spelled out. Please just address those points so we can get to the bottom of this!" The judge was silent for a moment, and the committee could see she was thinking about something so they remained quiet.

"I have a proposition for you all instead." The committee collectively sighed and shared looks of resignation.

"And what is this proposition?" the chairman asked her.

"Leave the matter of this proposed petition alone until after the first trial is concluded. If you still do not understand the nature of the petition afterwards, I'll submit to another little meeting like this and explain whatever you still don't understand. All I will tell you at this moment is that no laws have been bent, broken or manipulated and none of them will be." The committee members exchanged uncertain glances but silently communicated that they all agreed to the judge's proposition. The chairman sighed.

"Very well. We'll table this matter until after the first trial concludes, but not a moment longer." Sybil nodded and showed herself out. _Now I just have to hope these students have chosen adequate service activities_ she thought sadly as she made her way back to her office to prepare to preside over her next case.


	21. Lady Luck

Some people seem to have all the luck while are notoriously unlucky. Wednesday Amy, Ben, Grace, Ricky, and Judge Norbert would all be visited by Lady Luck without knowing it. With all the media attention being directed at the judge, the upcoming trials and this mysterious petition, reporters were buzzing around the courthouse non-stop, primarily concentrated around the DA and Judge Norbert's offices, including surrounding hallways and nearby bathrooms. After the media leak, Sybil had decided to have her meeting with her 'petitioners' in a conference room instead of her office so the students wouldn't be harassed and the petition wouldn't be potentially compromised before she'd ever had a chance to hear it. As the time of the scheduled meeting approached, as Lady Luck would have it, several parents of gamblers angrily entered the DA's office with their lawyers and demanded to speak with the prosecuting attorney about their children's cases. The lawyers were doing their level best to calm down their clients while the office assistants had called security, fearing the situation may escalate quickly. News of these outbursts had spread like wildfire through the circling reporters and they all raced to the scene to snap as many pictures as they could and take statements while camera crews did their best to catch the whole episode on film. With such an uproar occurring elsewhere, Judge Norbert was able to walk from her office, to a nearby food court, back to the courthouse, and to the reserved conference room without crossing paths with a single reporter or camera crew.

Back at Grant High a fight had broken out in the courtyard. Apparently several students whose friends were suspended for betting on Ben had been trash talking several other students whose friends were suspended for betting on Ricky, the trash talking had escalated to blows, and a large crowd had gathered to egg them all on. While teachers and the security guard rushed to break up the fight and disperse the crowd, Amy, Ben, Grace and Ricky were making their way towards Ricky's car to head to the courthouse. Grace had gotten the room number of the conference room they were meeting in from Ruben yesterday and had looked up a plan of the courthouse so they would know where to go once they got there. Like the judge, they were able to make their way to the reserved courtroom without crossing paths with a single reporter because of the chaos occurring at the DA's office. They arrived quickly, following Grace's printed off map, and knocked on the door.

"Come in," a voice told them and they did so. Ben closed the door behind them and then they each stepped towards the table and slowly took a seat. There were several sub sandwiches, bags of chips and sodas sitting on the table in front of them. They looked the judge questioningly and she smiled at them. "I knew we were meeting during your lunch break and I wasn't sure if you'd all have a chance to stop and grab lunch on your way back to school so help yourselves," she explained as she motioned towards the food. Once everyone had a sandwich, bag of chips and drink in front of them the judge spoke, more to give them a chance to take a few bites of their meal.

"So Ruben told me that one of you young ladies had an idea to propose community service activities instead of the other punishments prescribed by our state's gambling laws for your fellow students who were first time offenders, but the remaining three of you, who these bets were centered around, were uncomfortable going along with such a petition unless you were sure it could help your fellow students. Now, legally, I am under no obligation to consider such a petition but, like you all, I would rather find an alternate punishment for these young adults if possible and that it is the reason I am considering your proposal. Do you understand?" She looked at them each in turn and they nodded. "So let's get to it. What service activities have you all come up with?" Grace swallowed a bite of food and spoke first.

"Since this was my idea I guess I'll go first, your honor," Grace said politely. "My suggestion is to allow these students to volunteer at the Rescue Mission. Hopefully helping those less fortunate might help them appreciate the lives they live and decide to never again try to manipulate others." The judge arched her eyebrows in surprise. _Not bad._ She turned to look at Ben, who sitting to Grace's left. He quickly took a drink of his soda to wash down a bite of his sandwich.

"My suggestion is to allow them to volunteer to tutor middle school kids, through that mentoring program that gets advertised all the time on TV, that I can't remember the name of for some reason. Like Grace, I hope that helping someone else might make them appreciate their own lives and decide not to try and manipulate other people. Plus by doing so they'll be using their current educational knowledge to help other kids do well in school." Sybil smiled at Ben's explanation. _Another good idea._ She looked at Ricky next, as he was sitting to Ben's left.

"My suggestion is to allow them to volunteer at the YMCA, specifically with children's programs. Maybe if they had to be responsible for someone else and act like role models then they might think twice about how their actions affect other people." Again Sybil just smiled. _They've really thought about these community service activities._ Finally she looked at Amy.

"My suggestion is to allow them to volunteer at the Women's Resource Center. That way they can learn a little bit about what mothers, teen or otherwise, go through and hopefully learn to respect women a little better." Amy's statement caught the judge's attention.

"And why would you suggest these students have the opportunity to learn respect for women by learning about the challenges of motherhood?" Amy shifted in her seat uncomfortably.

"You don't know why Joe made those bets about us in the first place?" The judge shook her head and leaned forward curiously. "So you don't know who we are?" Again the judge shook her head, causing Amy to squirm a little more. Noticing her discomfort Ricky came to her rescue.

"Your honor, my name's Ricky. I met Amy at band camp," he explained, turning to glance at Amy to punctuate his statement. "A make out session went too far and she ended up pregnant. Before news of her pregnancy got out she met Ben," Ricky continued explaining, turning to glance at Ben this time. "They dated throughout her pregnancy and only recently broke up after she gave birth to our son." He took a deep breath to calm his irritation. Unlike Amy, Joe's actions still irritated him. "While Amy was home recovering I ended things with a girl I was seeing because I wanted to focus on taking care of Amy and our son. Ben told his friends he wanted to win Amy back because he still loved her. Joe overheard both of our conversations and started the bets to see which one of us Amy would 'take back' and how long it'd take her to choose. **That's** why Amy's suggesting the Women's Resource Center as a service location." The judge sat back in her chair, shock evident on her face. She turned to the young women whose name she still didn't know.

"And where do you fit into all of this?" Grace gave her a confused look but Ben chuckled and answered for her.

"Grace is a Christian and it's just in her nature to try to find ways to help people who need it." Grace nodded and then spoke for herself.

"I just feel like sending a bunch of teenagers to jail or juvie for a bad decision, even though it was a **very** bad decision, just seems a little too harsh. Since they're already facing two months suspension and possibly being held back, why not allow them to do something constructive during their suspension that would also allow them to repay their debt to society for breaking the law. If first time offenders were court-ordered to complete community service by the time their suspension ended then they'd have no reason not to be productive during that time. I also realized that if these three," she explained while gesturing to the teenagers beside her. "Had a hand in suggesting community service that they felt was related to this crime than you might be more willing to consider it." The judge could clearly see Grace's sincerity and hear the earnestness in her voice. She looked at the other three teenagers before her and felt admiration for them, as well as a little bit of curiosity. She turned her gaze to Amy.

"Amy, how have you stepped up to the responsibility of caring for a child?" Amy's brows knit together in confusion but she answered anyway.

"Well I work after school to earn a paycheck and pay for the free childcare my son receives."

"What kind of facility offers free childcare?" Sybil answered, genuinely curious, and legally a little concerned.

"Reverend Stone of the Community Church offered me a job at the church nursery. I drop my son off there in the morning so I can go to school and then I work there after school to pay for the childcare he's receiving." The judge nodded in understanding. She turned to Ricky. Sensing she might be about to question him about the kind of support he offered Amy and their son he went ahead and answered before she could question him.

"Before Amy took that job at the nursery Ben's dad knew we both wanted Amy to keep our baby instead of giving him up for adoption so he offered us both jobs after school at his family's butcher shop and we both still work there." The judge nodded with a smile.

"You all should be very proud of yourselves." At their confused looks Sybil chuckled. "Amy, Ben, Ricky. You all found yourselves in a difficult situation but you all stepped up to the plate. Not only that, but you're willing to help people who tried to profit from your difficult situation even though no one would blame you three, especially if they knew the whole story, if you demanded the full letter of the law be used against your peers. And Grace, you have a kind heart that's willing to help people even when they haven't asked for it. The four of you put thought and effort into these suggested community service activities and, in light of hearing a little bit of the backstory, I will **absolutely** consider these service activity in lieu of imprisonment or fines, but only for first time offenders." The four of them nodded in understanding and Grace's face lit up with a grin.

As the teens finished their lunches and chatted a little more with the judge about their situation and friendship, the situation at the DA's office took a turn for the worse. The parents had become more belligerent and their angry rants started to overlap. Somewhere in all the ranting a father declared his kid should be let off with a warning because he was a good kid while the rest of them were just deviants with absentee parents. Another father who was in the fray heard him and was even more angered. This second father was a truck driver who was gone for long stretches of time but thanks to email and Skype, he was still involved with his kids' lives and knew they were good kids. The truck driver turned his anger on the other father and things quickly escalated as other parents followed suit, turning on any other parent in the room who claimed their own child simply must've been influenced by a bad seed and implied that all other charged students **were** those bad seeds. Much like the trash talking that had taken place at Grant High, angry words soon turned to blows and the police were called in to assist the security guards in subduing the brawling parents. Several people in the office for unrelated cases began filming the incident and the videos were quickly uploaded to the web even as camera crews likewise caught the incident on film to be played during later news broadcasts. As parent after parent was cuffed and marched out of the office to cop cars, reporters followed. There was basically a mass exodus of reporters as they followed the cop cars to the station, hoping to catch a few sound bites or take a few statements as parents were being placed in lock up; only a few reporters stayed behind to take statements from security guards and other witnesses. Official representatives of the office refused to make any comments.

With the brouhaha at the DA's office, Amy, Ben, Grace and Ricky were able to make their way out of the courthouse and back to Ricky's car without crossing paths with a reporter. They did see a rather long train of cop cars heading further downtown but other than a passing glance the four teens paid the sight no mind as Ricky drove them back to school. They walked back into the main hallway just as the bell signaling the end of lunch rang. They said their goodbyes and parted ways to head off to class, none of them aware of all the drama that had transpired during lunch or at the courthouse, at least for a little while. Sybil was halfway back to her office before she crossed paths with a reporter. She stopped to take a drink from a water fountain and a reporter walked up to her as she stood up from the fountain.

"Yes?" she asked the woman in front of her.

"I'm Sandra Kelly of Channel Four News and I was wondering if you'd care to make a statement about the DA office brawl?" Sybil looked at her confused.

"The what?" The reporter smiled like it was Christmas morning.

"So you are unaware of what has been taking place at the DA's office over the last half hour?"

"I was in a luncheon meeting and I'm only now returning to my office so, no. And since I'm unaware of what has recently transpired I therefore have no comment." Sybil walked away from the reporter to head to her office and make some calls. _Now what_ she thought a she dialed the number. Back at Grant High Amy walked into her history class and took her seat, causing the two teens who'd been whispering together just in front of her seat to suddenly spring apart and clam up. Amy inwardly sighed. _I can't wait until these stupid cases are over and people move on to someone else's life to gossip about._ It wasn't until the period ended and Amy went to the bathroom to relieve herself that she found out about the lunchtime brawl. Shortly after she shut her stall door a couple of girls came in.

"So how many people got suspended this time?"

"Suspended? They're expelled!" The first girl gasped.

"What!?"

"The school's got a no tolerance policy for violence so anyone who was part of the fight got expelled."

"Man if this keeps up there won't be any students **left** at Grant. Why were people fighting over Ben and Ricky anyway?"

"So friends of some of the suspended kids who were on Team Ricky claimed that if Ben had never gotten involved with Amy then none of this woulda happened. But friends of some of suspended kids who were on Team Ben claim that if Ricky had just kept it in his pants **then** none of this woulda happened. Then both sides started trash talking about how the guy their friends bet on had a better chance of winning if none of the teachers had found out about it and then blows were thrown." The first girl scoffed.

"If they should be blaming anybody they should blame Amy. All she had to do was keep her legs closed."

"Have you **met** Ricky? The guy's got charm and a smooth tongue."

"It's a little something called willpower. He's flirted with me but I haven't slept with him because I know he's bad news."

"Well, maybe Amy didn't know his reputation at the time? I mean, they did meet at summer camp right?" The first girl thought about it.

"Maybe, maybe not. Either way. If she hadn't gotten pregnant and then started dating Ben while she was pregnant with another guy's baby then like half our student body wouldn't be facing jail time." The second girl scoffed this time.

"It's not half."

"Whatever, it's a lot." The girls left the bathroom and Amy waited a few seconds before coming out of the stall to wash her hands. _As much as I'd like to tell them all they don't know the whole story, I don't want a whole bunch of strangers to __**know**__ the whole story. It was hard enough to go through all that knowing people were judging me while only knowing some of the facts. I'm not interested in knowing that __**now**__ their judging me because they do know the whole story._ Amy went through the rest of the school day solemnly, lost in thought. Ricky noticed her somber expression as he saw her in the hallway before their last period and it made him nervous. The first thing that popped into his mind, against his will, was postpartum depression. _I know she's not happy about keeping the petition a secret so I'll just have to do my best to keep her mind off it while I'm over spending time with her and John_ he resolutely decided.


	22. Court Is In Session

News of the 'DA Office Brawl' made headlines on an assortment of news channels and gossip programs that evening in some form or another. Videos of the brawl taken by witnesses had gone viral and podcasts, blogs, and forums saw a huge jump in activity because of it. In fact, news of the 'Grant High Gamblers' made the news in various states across the country because of these videos and the online chatter surrounding them. All this new media attention only inflamed the fervor surrounding the upcoming trials and the atmosphere within the Grant High community was thick with tension and anticipation, especially once journalists and gossip columnists found out about the recent expulsions that were related to the earlier suspensions. While the rest of the community was on pins and needles, anxiously counting down the days until the start of the first trial, Amy, Ben, Grace and Ricky did their level best to avoid the news and tune out the gossip.

Before everyone knew it, a week had gone by and it was time for the first gambler's trial. The courthouse steps were filled with reporters anxious to get a statement from the student, her parents, or her lawyer before the trial but the young lady was quickly ushered up the steps and to the appointed courtroom. Not that it mattered much because there were just as many reporters waiting in the halls near the courtroom as there were waiting outside. The courtroom was packed. Students who had their own trials coming up in the next few days were present along with their parents and lawyers; their lawyers hoping for some insight into how to alter the presentation of their case for a more positive outcome. Plenty of reporters were present as well, waiting to see the outcome and also hoping the petition would be brought up. There were also plenty of other members of the community present simply out of curiosity. The air was thick with tension and was buzzing with the sound of whispered conversations. Suddenly a hush fell over the room as the bailiff stood up.

"Please rise for the honorable Judge Norbert," he stated clearly and calmly. Everyone rose as the judge entered the courtroom and took a seat behind the bench. "You may be seated," the bailiff informed the room and everyone quickly took their seats once more. The young woman being charged, Sarah Jenkins, a.k.a. 'Saint Sarah', fidgeted nervously in her seat as her lawyer stood up.

"Your honor, my client is a minor and first time offender who has taken responsibility for her actions by pleading guilty at her arraignment. This declaration shows that she feels remorse for her actions. As she has also been suspended from school for her actions until the end of May, being doubly punished for her infraction by being ordered to pay the prescribed fine violates my client's eighth amendment rights as her suspension, a judgment which has already begun to be carried out, already carries the potential to hold my client back a grade if she is unable to complete her missed schoolwork by the end of the school term this year. Justice for her infraction can best be administered by having her perform community service during her period of suspension." Ruben stood up to refute Sarah's lawyer.

"Your honor," he paused to pull a stapled printout from a small stack of papers he had in front of him. "Ms. Jenkins's punishment levied by Grant High School was in accordance with the penalty stated in the Grant High Student Handbook and can therefore not be used to argue a burden of unnecessary punishment. The fact Ms. Jenkins may be held back a year would have no bearing on this case if Ms. Jenkins's actions had occurred earlier in the school year. Mr. Easton is only mentioning this possibility because Ms. Jenkins was suspended so close to the end of the current school term." He held up the papers he had picked up. "This evidence clearly shows that Ms. Jenkins participated in Mr. Hampton's violation of Penal Code 337a paragraph 4 twice, participating in two related but separate betting pools. She is one of twenty-six students who placed their bets on the first day that Mr. Hampton began the betting pools." Ruben handed his printout to the bailiff to hand to the judge. The judge quickly scanned the pages and saw tables listing names, which guy each had placed a bet on, and a guess of a timeframe. Sybil's eyes widened in surprise but she quickly suppressed her reaction and schooled her facial features into a neutral expression. The table covered only three days but the photocopy showed that just under half of the students she would be trying over the next several weeks had joined the betting pools in those first three days. After scanning the pages for another moment she looked up and Ruben continued.

"According to Penal Code 336.9, the maximum fine should be levied against Ms. Jenkins twice because her actions encouraged the manipulation of three other individuals. Furthermore, for this reason we also argue that Ms. Jenkins should also be ordered to pay additional restitution in the amount of $180." Sarah's lawyer spoke up.

"Your honor! As Mr. Enriquez has already stated, the two betting pools were related and should be viewed as my client having placed just one bet. And the restitution is simply unnecessary as no person or property was damaged by my client's actions."

"I disagree," he said in Easton's direction before turning back to his table to pick up another piece of paper and then turning back to face the judge. "Your honor, the betters in the first pool were divided into two group. The betters who bet on the young man who would end up being chosen would all receive a portion of the total pot. Furthermore, if Ms. Jenkins had won the second betting pool she would've won an additional sum of money, this time split between only those other betters who had likewise guessed the timeframe that she had." He glanced at the paper while he continued to speak. "According to Mr. Hampton's logs, Ms. Jenkins bet on the same young man as forty-six other individuals. With each better betting twenty dollars the total pot amounts to $1720. Divided among these forty-six individuals, Ms. Jenkins stood to receive roughly $37. Now Ms. Jenkins bet a timeframe of three-and-a-half-months and so did twelve others. That means Ms. Jenkins stood to receive roughly an additional $143 dollars, for a total of $180." Ruben looked up. "We are merely asking for Ms. Jenkins to pay the fines prescribed by law as well as restitution in the amount that she stood to gain from this venture." He handed the paper to the bailiff to hand to the judge.

"Your honor, the prosecution's argument for restitution is based on conjecture," Sarah's lawyer argued back. "As she was charged with the infraction for which we are here in court today and is not contesting the fact the infraction was committed, asking her to pay restitution equal to an amount of money she may or may not have won is merely an attempt at excessive punishment." Sybil looked over the paper, glancing at the tabulations on the sheet.

"While Mr. Enriquez's argument for restitution is based on possible earnings that did not come to fruition, he makes a logical argument." The silence in the courtroom became deafening as everyone waited to hear the judge's ruling. Sybil looked up from the paper she had just been handed and the courtroom occupants seemed to take a collective breath and hold it. "The evidence is clear that Ms. Jenkins knowingly participated in two illegal betting pools and the prescribed punishment is clear. However, because of the circumstances surrounding these particular betting pools I am granting the prosecution's motion for added restitution." Sarah gasped and turned to look at her lawyer with fear in her eyes. "As prescribed by Penal Code 336.9 subsection a, I am ordering Ms. Jenkins to pay two fines of $250 for a total of $500. As for the restitution, I am offering you a choice, Ms. Jenkins." Sarah's eyes snapped to the judge. "While the prosecution believes this restitution is sufficient to serve as a lesson not to gamble illegally again, some of your schoolmates feel there is another way." People in the courtroom began whispering among themselves curiously and Sybil smiled a little. "I'm sure by now that you've heard about a petition for leniency," she said directly to Sarah. "Am I right?" Sarah looked at her lawyer for a sign of what to do next. He shrugged and Sarah turned back to face the judge, slowly nodding her head. Sybil smiled again. "Four of your fellow students, including the three these bets were focused around, came to me with suggestions of possible community service activities, related to this particular situation, that they felt had the potential to help you learn a lesson and repay your debt to society for this infraction. We will recess for ten minutes, during which time your lawyer will be given the list of the activities that were suggested and approved, and I expect your choice when we reconvene." Sybil banged her gavel and stood up, handing the bailiff a piece of paper. The bailiff stepped forward

"All rise," everyone did so and waited for the judge to leave the courtroom before quickly rushing into the hallway. The bailiff walked over to Mr. Easton and handed him the piece of paper. Sarah's parents came over to the table and they huddled with their lawyer as they looked it over. Her father spoke first.

"You'll take the community service option, obviously." Sarah nodded her head rapidly and looked over the paper.

"I pick the tutoring option. I've got good grades so I'm sure I won't have any problem tutoring middle school kids," Sarah said, looking back and forth between her parents and lawyer. Her parents nodded and then looked at her lawyer.

"Okay," he said. Sarah's mother sighed with relief but her father was slightly irritated.

"That $500 dollars is coming out of your allowance by the way," he informed his daughter gruffly. Sarah wisely chose to remain silent and simply nodded her head.

"Who are these students who came up with this proposal anyway?" Sarah's mother asked.

"Amy, Ben, and Ricky, the three kids the bets were about. I don't know who the fourth person is but my bet," she paused when her parents and lawyer gave her an angry look. "Uh, I mean, guess, is that it's one of their friends or Grace Bowman. She's the kind of girl who takes on other people's problems."

"Well I'm baking them each a pie," Sarah's mother stated resolutely. Her husband and daughter looked at her in disbelief. "What? If they hadn't gone to the judge with this petition of offering community service instead of restitution payments then we'd be out even more money over this. At least this way you can start serving your community service while you're suspended so you'll have fewer hours to complete once your suspension's over."

"Guess you're right," Sarah's father conceded. They all took their seats and waited for the recess to be over. Reporters meanwhile were outside the courtroom reporting a mile a minute to their respective news stations and publications. Not only did they now have a sense of how the future trials would progress, but news of the petition had also been confirmed. What was the most newsworthy note of the day, however, was that the students who the bets were about had stepped forward of their own accord to try and help these students. Now the question on everyone's mind was just who **were** the students these bets were about? The recess ended and he bailiff called everyone to order as Sybil reentered the courtroom and took her seat behind the bench. She looked at Mr. Easton.

"Mr. Easton, what has your client decided concerning her restitution?" Mr. Easton stood up.

"My client will perform community service by tutoring, your honor." Sybil nodded her head.

"Very well. Ms. Jenkins, a representative of the court will be in touch to give you the details of your community service and to accept the payment of your fine." Sybil filled out some paperwork and handed it to the bailiff before she once again banged her gavel and then stood to exit the courtroom. Sarah, her parents and lawyer quickly exited the courtroom and pushed past all the reporters, only saying 'no comment'. _One down eighty-five to go_ Sybil thought sadly as she entered her chambers and opened a bottle of water. She checked her watch and sighed. She had a short lunch break coming up and then she would spend the rest of the day ruling on gamblers' cases. Ruben was making his way back to his office for a short break as well when someone called out to him.

"Mr. Enriquez! Mr. Enriquez!" Ruben turned around to see a female lawyer approaching him. He had spoken to her last week when she had come on her client's behalf to inquire about the mystery petition.

"Yes, Ms. Thompson?"

"May we speak in your office?" she asked, glancing around at the reporters hovering nearby and snapping pictures. Ruben nodded and led the way to his office, motioning her inside once he'd reached his office door and quickly shutting it.

"What can I do for you, Ms. Thompson?" he asked once they had both taken a seat.

"Myself, my client and her parents witnessed Ms. Jenkins's trail and they have asked me to have a word with you."

"Go on."

"As their daughter, like Ms. Jenkins, is a first time offender and also entered a plea of not guilty during her arraignment they feel that it would be a waste of time and money to go through with a trial that has the potential to simply be a repeat of Ms. Jenkins's trial. They have stated that they will not contest their daughter being issued a $500 fine and have expressed a desire to have their daughter accept a restitution of community service as well." Ruben sat back in his chair and mulled over Ms. Thompson's words for a moment.

"Ms. Thompson, I do not have the authority to place restitution of community service on the table for your client. We feel that restitution is owed so that your client will think twice before committing this act or one like it in the future. However, if the restitution is the only issue that needs to be resolved then we can forgo the trial and arrange a meeting directly with the judge instead if your client is willing to waive their right to a trial by jury." Ms. Thompson nodded in understanding.

"I'll need to confer with my clients." She stood and Ruben walked her to the door. When she opened it to leave he noticed quite a few lawyers and their clients crowded into the office. He looked at his assistant questioningly.

"Their clients are scheduled to appear in court this afternoon and they wished to have a word with you." Ruben sighed but motioned in the first lawyer and their clients he saw seated. He had seen six lawyers with their clients before he took a break to get some lunch. Like Ms. Thompson, each had come on their gambler client's behalf claiming that since their client was a first time offender who had entered a guilty plea, they should simply be offered the same judgment Sarah Jenkins had received instead of sitting through a repeat trial. He gave them each the same spiel he had given Ms. Thompson and then asked them to wait for his call before they left his office. When Ruben returned with his lunch his office was crowded with another group of lawyers with their clients. His assistant made a move to talk to him but he shook his head. Ruben got to work making the appropriate phone calls and getting the necessary paperwork filed, informing his assistant to take the names and numbers of the lawyers still waiting in his office and inform them that he would call them when he had time to meet with them, and to reassure them that he would make sure it was before their clients' cases went to trial. Sybil was slightly amused when she received word that Ruben and an assortment of lawyers wanted private meetings in her chambers to resolve their client's charges, as their clients had suddenly waived their right to a trial by a jury. She accepted the meetings of course, secretly hoping the whole gamblers debacle would be over much sooner than the several weeks that they were currently occupying on the court docket. After the lunch break, Ruben met in Sybil's chambers with Ms. Thompson and her clients and Sybil spoke first.

"I understand that your client has recently decided to waive their right to a trial by jury." Ms. Thompson nodded. "Any particular reason?"

"My clients feel that because their daughter, like Ms. Jenkins, is a first time offender who entered a guilty plea that, should we go to trial, both my client and the court would be forced to relive Ms. Jenkins's trial and arrive at a similar, if not the exact, judgment, since you are the presiding judge and have stated on record that you were willing to consider restitution of community service in lieu of the fine proposed by the prosecution." Sybil turned to look at Ruben.

"**Was** the prosecution petitioning for a similar judgment and restitution levied against Ms. Jenkins?"

"We were, your honor," Ruben informed her.

"Very well. As your client matches the profile of Ms. Jenkins I will levy the same judgment against her and give her the choice of one of the proposed community service options." Sybil handed a printout with the possible activities on it to Ms. Thompson.

"Do you and your clients need some time to decide?" The young woman being charged, Naomi Rutgers, looked at her choices and shook her head. She looked at her lawyer.

"I'll volunteer at the YMCA," she stated.

"Very well," Sybil said. "Ms. Rutgers you are hereby ordered to pay a fine of $500 and complete 100 hours of community service performing the activity you have chosen," Sybil informed her, filling out and signing the appropriate paperwork. "Did you attend Ms. Jenkins's trail?" Naomi nodded. "Then you know someone will be in touch." Ms. Thompson and her clients rose, bid the judge good day, and left her chambers. Sybil buzzed Carol to send in the next lawyer and their clients. Sybil issued the same judgment for the next six charged students, allowing each to select the service activity they were willing to perform. As the cases were all concluded so quickly, Sybil and Ruben ended up with a one hour break in their schedule. Ruben took his leave and returned to his office, only to find that his office was once again crowded with more lawyers wishing to speak to him. There was actually a line at his assistant's desk where she was taking down names and phone numbers and giving them the pitch Ruben had asked her to give earlier. Ruben shook his head slightly in her direction to let her know he still didn't have time to meet with lawyers just yet and she handed him a list of lawyers' names and numbers as he headed into his office and shut the door. Ruben's heart sank a little as he reviewed the case file of the client whose lawyer he was about to call first. Unfortunately, this young man would **have** to go to trial and he doubted the young man's lawyer would take the news very well.


	23. Eating Crow & Yogurt

The next morning there was a knock at Amy's front door. Anne was upstairs finishing getting ready and Amy was downstairs with John. She opened the front door with John in her arms and found a woman holding a pie and a teenage girl, who was presumably her daughter, standing on the front porch. The woman's eyes widened when she saw Amy holding a baby but she didn't say anything.

"May I help you?" Amy asked politely.

"My name is Georgia Jenkins and this is my daughter Sarah," the woman told her just as Anne came down the stairs.

"Who is it, Amy?" Anne asked as she rounded the corner, stopping when she noticed the visitors at the front door. "Hello."

"Hello. I was just telling your daughter that my name is Georgia Jenkins, this is my daughter Sarah and I baked this pie for Amy to say thank you." Anne and Amy shared a confused look.

"Come in," Anne told her guests and then directed them towards the living room. Georgia and Sarah joined Amy on the couch while Anne sat in the loveseat. "A thank you for what?"

"My daughter participated in the betting pools that were going around Grant High School and she had her trial yesterday morning. The judge told us that four students at Grant, including the three these bets were about, went to the judge with suggestions for community service options instead of additional penalties." Anne's eyes widened in surprise and she glanced at Amy quickly; Amy shrugged. "I asked my daughter who the three students were that the bets were about, she told me, and then I baked each of them a pie to say 'thank you for doing something to help lighten my daughter's sentence, even though you didn't have to'." Georgia smiled at Amy and handed the pie to Anne. "I looked your name up in the phone book and wanted to come over before your daughter left for school this morning." Anne smiled back at her and stood up.

"Thank you. This was very nice of you to do," Anne said. Georgia shook her head.

"It was nice of your daughter to try and help my daughter, considering the situation, so it's the least I can do." She turned to Sarah and gave her a pointed look.

"I wanted to say that I'm sorry, Amy. I shouldn't have tried to make a few bucks off your situation," Sarah told Amy sincerely, having been thoroughly chastised by her whole ordeal over the bets.

"Thanks," Amy said with a small smile, causing Sarah to smile a little as well.

"We'll be going now," Georgia declared, heading towards the front door. Once she reached it she turned back around to face Amy. "Thank you again for what you did for my daughter." Amy nodded her head to say 'you're welcome' and then the two women left. Anne shut the door and then headed into the kitchen with Amy in tow. As Georgia and Sarah made their way back to the car Georgia fiercely scolded her daughter. "You placed bets on a teenage mother!? What's the matter with you!? Don't you think she's got enough to deal with without her entire high school making sport out of her life!?" Sarah cringed at her mother's tone as she climbed into the car. "And what about these two boys that were part of the bet?" Georgia asked as she buckled her seatbelt and then turned to face her daughter. "Just how are they associated with Amy **exactly**?" Her eyes told Sarah that she expected the truth. Sarah slunk down in her seat a little before she answered.

"Well. Ricky's the father of Amy's baby and Ben was her boyfriend during her pregnancy, but they broke up shortly after the baby was born." Her mother huffed in disgust.

"You know, maybe you **should've** been more severely punished by the judge."

"MOM!"

"WHAT!? You were playing games with the life of an innocent child!" Georgia explained as she pulled out of the driveway.

"Huh?"

"The outcome of this little game you all were playing was going to affect the relationship of two people who are trying to raise a defenseless child! Did it ever occur to you that the relationship between Amy and Ricky would've been strained if she'd chosen Ben or had she chose him that it might've possibly been strained once they found out about the bets because they would second guess themselves as to whether they were **manipulated** into choosing each other? Either way their job of raising their child together would've become even **more** challenging. And what about Ben's feeling, huh!? Did you ever think that maybe he'd wonder the same thing if Amy had chosen him or get his feelings hurt because a bunch of teenagers damaged his chances of reconciling with his ex-girlfriend!?" Sarah was silent for the remainder of the ride to Ben's house. She hadn't thought about it like that; she'd just thought it would be interesting to see who Amy would pick. He mother's words made her feel truly guilty for the first time since she'd been suspended and she tried to hold back the tears that she felt like shedding. They pulled up to Ben's house and Sarah silently got out to follow her mother to the front door. The butler greeted them and ushered them inside. Moments later Ben and Leo Boykewich joined them in the foyer.

"Good morning," Leo greeted his guests. "To what do we owe this pleasure?" Georgia glared at her daughter before speaking to Leo.

"My name is Georgia Jenkins and this is my daughter Sarah. While my daughter was cruel enough to participate in the bets that were going around Grant High I wanted to thank your son for doing something to try and help the gamblers, which happened to include my daughter, so I baked him a pie." She held the pie out towards Ben, who took it with a surprised look on his face.

"Uh. Thank you," he said hesitantly.

"There's no need to thank me. After all, my daughter was playing games with your life." She turned to look at Sarah and she felt more than saw her mother's eyes seeing as her head was down. She knew she needed to apologize and sincere tears started to fall even though she couldn't bring herself to face Ben.

"I'm so sorry, Ben" she managed to get out before having to sniffle. "I just thought it would be interesting to see how it all played out. I…I….I didn't mean to be part of something that could've been so manipulative." She had to stop and sniffle again. "I'm so sorry!" she wailed. Ben could tell she was genuinely sorry for her actions and attitude and his heart went out to her.

"Hey, we all make stupid mistakes and do things we probably shouldn't from time to time, right?" he said in an attempt to try and make her feel better. "All you can do is try not to make the same mistake twice." Sarah looked up at him with shock. She had done something so cruel and here he was letting her off the hook? Fresh tears fell and she rushed forward to hug him. Leo managed to take the pie from Ben's hands moments before Sarah embraced him.

"You're such a good person, Ben. Thank you!" Ben awkwardly hugged her back for a moment and then Sarah stepped back to wipe the wetness from her face. Georgia sensed it was time to go.

"Well we won't keep you. I hope you enjoy the pie."

"We will," Leo assured her as he escorted them to the front door. Ricky's morning wasn't interrupted by Georgia Jenkins as his name wasn't in the phone book and Sarah didn't know where he lived. As most of the students who had been suspended had their cellphones taken away, and most of the remaining students at Grant didn't really follow the news by actually watching it on TV, the school day passed by pretty uneventfully. At lunchtime Ricky joined Amy and Madison at a table outside. They were soon joined by Grace and Jack and the teens chatted easily enough as they ate their lunches, with Amy, Grace and Ricky doing their best to steer the conversation away from discussing the gambling situation. Ricky noticed curiously that Amy's lunch included three yogurts and he commented on it.

"Got a hankering for yogurt today?" Amy looked at him confused. He glanced down at her lunch and her eyes followed suit. She shrugged but didn't offer any comment or explanation. Ricky didn't think about Amy's sudden taste for yogurt again until he went over to her house after work. He bathed John while she finished her dinner and he noticed that once again she was eating yogurt and he was sure it didn't exactly go with her dinner of pork chops, mashed potatoes and steamed vegetable. He didn't mention it as Amy rocked John to sleep, as she tucked him in, as they were picking up his things from around the house, or as they cleaned up the dinner dishes. However, when Amy grabbed another yogurt from the fridge Ricky's curiosity got the best of him.

"Okay, Amy. That's like the fifth yogurt I've seen you eat today. I know it's a healthy snack but what gives?" he asked, genuinely curious. Amy shrugged but he was too curious to let it go. "Well?" Amy gave him a look that clearly said 'leave it alone' and he gave her one right back that clearly said 'not a chance.'

"Let's just say I'm trying to fix a non-threatening health issue without having to go to the doctor," she finally conceded. Unfortunately, all she did was alarm him.

"What kind of health issue? If you're sick you should go to the hospital right away! How long've you been sick? Is it contagious? Wait, if it's contagious we should take John to the ER and get his checked out!" Ricky made a move to dash up the stairs to get John but Amy's voice stopped him.

"I'm fine, Ricky, and no, it's not contagious so just drop it," she assured him.

"So you **are** sick! How long've you been sick!?" he demanded, worry lacing his voice.

"I'm not sick, Ricky. It's….a feminine issue so just relax."

"And what the frack does that mean!?" Amy sighed. She'd been trying to avoid giving him anything specific but his paranoia that she was ill would only be soothed if she gave him a straight answer.

"I have a yeast infection," she begrudgingly admitted. His face became washed in confusion.

"Like the stuff you need to make bread? How the heck do you get infected by that!?" Amy looked at him in disbelief for a moment before she burst into laughter, causing Ricky to look at her in disbelief.

"What's so funny?" he asked seriously, causing Amy to laugh even more. She somehow managed to remember to muffle her laughter so as not to wake her son and covered her mouth with her hands. She wiped away the few tears that had slipped out and looked straight at Ricky, trying to keep a straight face so she could explain.

"Ricky, being pregnant, having a baby, and then adjusting to caring for that baby wreaks havoc on a woman's body and hormone levels, including her good bacteria levels." She could tell that Ricky was following her but had no idea what she was getting at. "My hormones and levels aren't back to normal just yet and because of it I got a yeast infection." She could see Ricky was about to make a comment or ask a question so she quickly continued. "And it has nothing to do with the yeast you bake with." She paused to consider her next words carefully, having no desire to give the father of her baby a Sex Ed lesson in the middle of her kitchen.

"What?" he asked when she remained silent for too long.

"I'm tryna figure out how to explain this without having to get too technical."

"Why? Because you think I won't understand it?" he challenged her with a mocking smile. Amy arched an eyebrow and smiled, giving him a look that said 'you asked for it.'

"Alright smart guy. The vagina is acidic and contains good bacteria that kill off bad bacteria. When its pH shifts too much in the wrong direction the good bacteria don't do their job and a woman gets a yeast infection, evidenced by an uncomfortable itching sensation among other things." Ricky cringed with disgust and Amy tried to hide a smile. "Yogurt contains good bacteria that can help cure a yeast infection naturally. Instead of just eating it at every meal I'm eating multiple yogurts throughout the day to clear it up faster." She smiled at Ricky's obvious discomfort. "I told you to drop it." Ricky just nodded his head, still cringing slightly.

"Do all new mothers get these infections? I mean, did your doctor tell you about them or something?" Amy chuckled.

"Any menstruating female can get them, Ricky; it's not limited to new moms and it's not the first one I've ever had." _T.M.I, T.M.I!_ he thought to himself, swallowing a lump in his throat.

"I'm gonna go now," he said flatly while making his way to the kitchen door. He opened it and took a step out before turning back to look at Amy. "I'm glad you're not sick, Amy," he told her sincerely before closing the door behind him. Amy continued to smile as she headed upstairs to take a shower. _Poor guy. The look on his face was priceless but I feel kinda bad that I scared him._ Her smile slowly faded. _He's been getting way too worked up over everything I do or that happens to me lately. If I didn't know any better I'd almost think he cared about my wellbeing._


	24. The Gynecologist & the Groupies

By Friday the identities of the 'petitioners' had been uncovered. Amy, Ben, Grace and Ricky had each received visits from quite a few grateful parents **and** nosy reporters. As the 'petitioners' and their parents had all repeatedly declined to comment to reporters' questions, the media attention gradually began to taper off. Especially since by Friday afternoon seventy-two of the eighty-six gamblers had likewise met in Judge Norbert's chambers privately instead of going to court and had chosen a community service activity. Sybil was elated that all the students she'd seen so far were first time offenders and that she **could** offer them community service instead of having them pay restitution. Next week, however, she would have to hear the cases for several students who had one or more infractions already. At Grant High the Trio was now the subject of gossip for a different reason: now their fellow students admired them. They felt that the three of them should be commended for rising above any bitterness or anger they had towards their fellow students and trying to help them out. It seemed that everyone was making a big deal out of the petition **except** the people responsible for making it a reality.

Ricky, not being someone who liked being in the spotlight, was anxious for the school day to end and the weekend to begin. Ben was so tired of hearing about the bets and the petition that we was literally fidgeting in his seat the entire last period as we watched the clock slowly inch closer to 3:00, sure that time was going slower just to torture him. Amy, however, had been gossiped about for so long that she had more practice tuning it out so she was able to simply brush aside the looks and comments and was able to focus on what her teacher was saying in class. Grace, having been the center of unwanted media attention before, handled the situation with the same humility and grace that she'd demonstrated when she'd been caught on camera defending herself late one night. When the bell rang Ricky and Ben bolted from their classrooms to stop by their lockers quickly and then head to work; Amy and Grace weren't in quite as much of a hurry but still managed to leave the school grounds relatively quickly after the final bell had rung. Amy and Grace politely inclined their heads towards well-wishers or offered polite thank you's as they made their way outside. Ben, Ricky and Amy received additional praise from their bosses and co-workers when they arrived at work and they politely accepted the praise and then started their shifts. When Ricky pulled into Amy's driveway after work that evening he felt exhausted and tense. He couldn't wait for the news to find someone or something else to focus on. His mood vastly improved when he laid eyes on his son. No matter what kind of day he was having, just seeing John's face made him smile. Spending an hour with Amy and John removed the tension from his body and calmed his nerves, enabling him to sleep soundly when he climbed into bed that night.

Ricky woke up bright and early Saturday morning so he could stop by and see John for a little bit before he had to start his shift. When he arrived, Amy let him in through the kitchen door, a slightly fussy John in her arms.

"Hey. Just let me burp the little guy and then you can take him," Amy told him by way of greeting and explanation. She glanced around for a burp cloth but didn't see one. "Guess I left the cloths in the living room." The phone rang just then and Amy inclined her head towards it. "Could you get that and take a message?" she asked, waiting to leave the room until he had nodded.

"Hello?" Ricky said when he answered the phone.

"Hello. This is Darlene from Dr. Mitchell's office. Is Amy available?"

"Not at the moment. Can I take a message?"

"This is just a courtesy call to remind her we have her scheduled for a 10:00 appointment next Saturday morning." Ricky's heart skipped a beat. _An appointment for what!?_

"Okay," he miraculously managed to say, even though his throat was suddenly dry. "I'll let her know."

"Thank you. Have a nice day."

"You too." Ricky hung up the phone and walked into the living room. Amy had placing John in his swing and was picking up his things from around the living room.

"Who was it?" she asked without looking at Ricky, dropping several stuffed animals into John's toy bin in the corner.

"Darlene." Amy looked over her shoulder and gave him an inquisitive look. "From Dr. Mitchell's office?" Ricky could see in her eyes that she now recognized who the person was but she went back to straightening up without offering an explanation. She folded one of John's baby blankets silently and the silence and his worry was suffocating him. "I thought you weren't sick!" he exclaimed. Amy turned to face him with her brows furrowed.

"I'm not."

"Then what're you going to the doctor's next Saturday for!? I'm sure it's not a physical since most teens get those before school starts and didn't they give you a checkup after you had John!?" Amy continued to look at him with her eyebrows furrowed. "What's going on, Amy!?" She regarded him silently for several moments.

"How long are you gonna do this?"

"Do what!?"

"Overreact like that."

"Huh?" Amy sighed and rolled her eyes as she tucked some of her hair behind her ear.

"Ricky, since I've had John you get all worried, nervous and upset with me every time I don't act the way you think I should, tell you every little thing that's going on with me, or you find out something you didn't know about before," she explained calmly.

"No I don't!" Amy laughed, causing Ricky to feel confused.

"Ricky, right after John was born you were worried that something was wrong with me because I wasn't as happy as you thought I should be. **Then** you got all paranoid and started hovering around me when you found out about postpartum depression. After **that** you got all curious and nervous when you found out I occasionally used a breast pump. A few days ago you freaked out when I told you I had a yeast infection and just **now** you jumped down my throat because I didn't tell you about a doctor's appointment I had." Ricky processed her words and his anger quickly dissipated.

"Have I really been overreacting that much?" he asked nervously. Amy smirked at him and nodded.

"Ricky, if there's ever anything serious going on with me that's going to affect our son, I give you my word that I'll tell you about it. I'm not saying you can't ask me questions about what's going with me or in my life but do you think you could try to do it without yelling at me or freaking out?" This time Ricky smirked, more at his own behavior than at Amy's request.

"Yeah, I think I can do that; it's just gonna take me some getting used to," he admitted. "You and John are the two most important people in my life, Amy, and I feel bad that I'm not here more often simply because we don't live all that close to each other. And since I'm not here 24/7 I worry about how the two of you are doing when I'm **not** here so I try to do as much as I can when I **am** here so taking care of our son will be a little easier on you, at least for a little while." Amy smiled as she walked closer to him. She kissed his cheek and then took a step back, a smile still on her face while a look of confusion was on Ricky's.

"Your concern for us is sweet and touching and I **do** appreciate everything you do for me while you're here. When you go home at night we're okay. If we're ever **not** okay you'll be the first person I call," she assured him with a smile, earning a smile from him as well. John began fussing a little so Ricky walked over to his swing and scooped him up, rocking him slightly.

"So what's the appointment for," he asked hesitantly, not sure if Amy would tell him.

"My six week checkup." Ricky's brows furrowed.

"Why a six week checkup? Do you have a bunch of checkups you're gonna have to have or something?" Amy shook her head.

"No. Doctors have concluded that its takes a woman who's just given birth about six weeks to heal you know where and next Saturday will be six weeks since John was born." Ricky nodded in understanding but a few seconds later Amy's words registered in his brain.

"It takes six weeks to heal!?" Amy laughed at Ricky's shocked expression.

"Roughly. That's why I'm going in for the checkup, to make sure everything's back to normal." Ricky checked his watch and saw that he needed to head to work so he handed John back to Amy. He promised to stop by after his shift and then headed out the door, mentally processing this new piece of information about the female body_. I thought she'd need a __**couple**__ of weeks to recuperate but six!? I can't believe I did what I did to her. She's been going through so many changes physically and emotionally because of me and I had no idea! I pay attention in class and I'm pretty positive Sex Ed just stopped at explaining how babies come into the world. I'm also pretty positive more guys would think twice about having sex if they knew what they would be putting girls through if they got 'em pregnant. Well, the guys with a conscience anyway._ Ricky stopped at a red light and placed his forehead on his steering wheel and groaned, disgusted with himself and hoping against hope that Amy's appointment would go well and everything….down there….would be back to normal.


	25. New Beginnings

By the end of May the 'Grant High Gambles' were old news. All the students who were first time offenders had been busy during their suspensions working on their community service; those students who were second time offenders had been ordered to pay additional restitution equal to the amount of money they would've won from the pools. When the suspendees returned to school they all minded their own business and kept their noses in their studies, doing everything in their power to make sure they made up their missed assignments and tests so they wouldn't be held back, and because of this the atmosphere at Grant High was slightly more relaxed than it had been since the school year began. One surprising twist was that some of these students were enjoying their chosen community service activity so much that they told their parents they wanted to continue to do it even after their required hours had been served.

By this time Amy and Ricky had been spending so much time together that they had managed to become genuine friends. Ricky stuck to his word and stopped sleeping around. In fact, he hadn't had sex with anyone since he'd made the vow not to and he felt good about it. Amy had adjusted to life as a teen mom and, since John was sleeping for longer stretches of time at night, she was getting more sleep and it was doing **wonders** for her mood.

Ben was still adjusting to life without Amy. He had come to the realization that even though he still cared about Amy, and might for the rest of his life, he wasn't in love with her and it was time to move forward and find someone else. His adjustment was made a little easier as he was now seeing a girl named Melody. They had been partnered up for a lab assignment shortly after the initial mass suspensions and they had hit it off. Remembering his relationship with Amy, Ben decided to take things slow and at the moment he and Melody were in a pretty good place in their budding relationship and he was happy. Alice and Henry noticed Ben's happier attitude and, after spending some time hanging out with him and Melody so they could all get to know each other better, Alice gave Melody a stamp of approval, as did Henry.

Madison and Lauren noticed Ricky's change in behavior and attitude towards Amy shortly after John was born and they had been monitoring it discreetly while at school and then talked to Amy about her relationship with him when they hung out. They could tell Ricky had sincerely turned over a new leaf and was being a good dad to John so they quit giving him such a hard time. They might never **fully** forgive him for hurting their best friend, but if he kept it up, there was a slim chance of it happening in the future.

Grace's life didn't change all that much due to John's arrival or the whole gambling debacle. She had a desire to help out some fellow students who were in trouble and did so, end of story. However, Grace's friendship with Adrian grew a little stronger after Adrian found out Grace was one of the 'petitioners.' Adrian was shocked to discover that Grace's big heart wasn't just an act. She was truly grateful that her poor decision to bet on the boys had only cost her parents money and didn't land her in juvie and, with a friend as kind hearted as Grace, Adrian hoped that by spending more time hanging out with and talking to Grace maybe some of Grace's personality would rub off on her. She also noticed Ricky's change in behavior and attitude, towards all girls and not just Amy, and secretly it inspired her. If someone like Ricky, with his past and personality, could turn over a new leaf then so could she.

The Grant High community had learned a lesson from the whole fiasco as well. Quite a few parents realized their kids needed more parental supervision and stepped up to the plate. These parents gave their kids earlier curfews; started checking their cellphone and laptops once a week, on a random day each week; and restricted their other privileges until they earned back their parents' trust and respect. The principal resolved to make sure students weren't provided with spaces within the school to conduct any other illegal sorts of activities and organized a sweep of the school's storage, activity, and auxiliary rooms that was conducted during spring break back in April. The principal also had all locks and electronic entrance codes changed so students couldn't sneak in late at night and, so far, there had been no reports or whispers of any illegal or questionable activities since then. All in all the community and its teenaged population learned lessons from the whole experience but it was perhaps Ricky Underwood who received the most enlightening and unnerving lessons, as the birth of his son taught him just how insufficient high school Sex Ed really is.

**THE END**


End file.
